Terence and Tumnus: 100 Challenge
by unicorn-skydancer08
Summary: A challenge I invented for myself, in which I write 100 one-shot stories, featuring Tumnus and his best mate, Terence. A combination of comedy and sweetness. Tumnus property of C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media; Terence property of yours truly.
1. Winter Wonderland

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Since today is Christmas, I figured I'd start this off with a little Christmas tale. It's basically a story of how Terence encounters winter for the first time, with some pretty humorous results._

_Throughout the entire series, Terence seesaws between man and unicorn. On occasion, Lucy and her siblings and others will make an appearance; but on the whole, all of these stories focus mainly on Terence and Tumnus. And these stories are not written in any particular order; I simply write them as they come to me. If you have any questions, feel free to ask._

_I hope you enjoy this, and merry Christmas!_

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved.**_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated.**_

**

* * *

STORY ONE:  
WINTER WONDERLAND**

"Mr. Tumnus! Mr. Tumnus, wake up!" Lucy squealed as she darted into Tumnus's chamber and all but pounced onto the bed, waking the sleeping faun up at once.

"Wha—?" Tumnus gasped aloud as he bolted upright and glanced rapidly about the room, his china-blue eyes bulging with alarm. When he saw it was only Lucy, he relaxed and allowed himself to breathe more freely. "Oh, Lucy…it's you. What is it? Are you all right? Is everything all right?"

"It's snowing, Mr. Tumnus!" said the young Daughter of Eve excitedly. "_It's snowing!_"

Looking toward his window, Tumnus saw that she was right. Giant flakes of fluffy white snow were cascading steadily from the gray-laden skies, pushed helter-skelter by the wind.

"So it is," the faun mused. "Then again, it is only about a week or so until Christmas."

"Come on, let's go play!" insisted Lucy, who was already dressed for the day.

With a groan, Tumnus flopped back against his pillows, covering his eyes with his arm. "Oh, Lucy…can't this wait until later?" He was still feeling quite drowsy, and he had just been in the middle of a perfect dream when Lucy jumped on him. Besides, he was reluctant to head outside into the cold, when he could stay in his nice, soft, warm bed.

"Oh, come on," Lucy persisted. "Please, Mr. Tumnus? Pretty please?"

Upon hearing this, Tumnus uncovered his face to look at her directly, and she stuck out her lower lip at him, as she often did when attempting to butter someone up.

That puppy-dog look won Tumnus over, and he said with a great sigh, "Oh…all right."

Lucy's entire face lit up, and she cried joyously, "Oh, good!"

"But first," said Tumnus, with a slight indicating nod of his head, "would you mind letting me up, please?"

Realizing she was still perched on Tumnus's lap, Lucy quickly hopped off him, saying somewhat apologetically, "Oh! Sorry, Mr. Tumnus."

Throwing his blankets aside and standing up on his hooves, Tumnus said, "Go bundle up, Lucy, while I take a minute to freshen up a bit; and then we'll be on our way—"

But Lucy had already bolted out of the room, even before the words had entirely left her friend's mouth. Tumnus was taken aback for a moment, and then he couldn't help smiling and laughing a little.

"All right, then," he said amusedly to the void around him.

He took a minute to stretch himself out, getting his whole body to wake up, and then he filled the basin of his washstand with warm water, where he washed his hands and rinsed his face thoroughly. He was just drying himself off on the towel by the time Lucy came back, all wrapped up from head to toe. "I'm ready, Mr. Tumnus!" she proclaimed proudly.

"So I see," he answered with a chuckle, as he finished drying his face and folded his towel neatly in half. "All right, Lucy, I'm coming."

He then added, using one of Edmund's choice phrases, "Keep your boots on."

* * *

Soon, Tumnus and Lucy were outside Castle Cair Paravel, with Tumnus's thick red scarf wrapped stylishly about his neck and shoulders. Now that the evil White Witch was gone, and now that winter came only at its appointed season, and now that Lucy and her siblings were the legitimate rulers and defenders of Narnia, winter seemed a much more enchanting and beautiful time—at least, in Tumnus's eyes, it was.

Together the two friends playfully pursued one another from here to there, darting from one spot to another. "You can't catch me!" Lucy called cheekily over her shoulder, when it came Tumnus's turn to come after her.

"Yes, I can!" the faun called back to the little queen, with genuine enthusiasm in his voice and countenance.

Lucy was so caught up in getting away from Tumnus, and in her own laughter, that she did not pay attention to where she was going; and she ended up inadvertently slamming into something big and white, something that was neither snow, nor a snow-covered tree or rock or bush…but rather a living creature. The unforeseen impact caused Lucy to lose her balance, and she ended up toppling backwards into the soft snow.

"Whoa—hey!" a startled voice cried out. "Watch it!"

Seconds later, Tumnus's anxious face appeared above Lucy.

"Lucy!" he gasped. "Are you all right?"

Blinking in astonishment, Lucy answered bemusedly, "I…I guess so."

Tumnus sighed in relief, then he bent down and very carefully picked the girl up from the ground, setting Lucy gently on her feet. He helped to brush the snow off her, before pulling her into his arms and hugging her close. With her face nestled against the faun's bare chest, Lucy smiled. Tumnus's hugs always felt warm and good, and always made her feel secure. In his arms, it was as if nothing in the world were frightening, or overly important.

When Tumnus let her go, they both looked to see just what it was Lucy had plowed into. At first glance, it appeared to be a white horse—but when the beast shook itself to get rid of the snow that had fallen onto its body, and when it turned its head to face them properly, Tumnus saw it was his friend Terence, the unicorn.

"Terence!" Lucy squealed happily, upon recognizing the stallion.

"Hey, there, mate," Tumnus greeted his old four-legged comrade.

"Would you kindly watch where you're going?" Terence asked them. "Or, at least give a little warning, will you?" He was not angry, but it was obvious that the young stallion was irritated.

"Sorry," Lucy apologized. "I didn't realize you were there."

And it was no wonder, Tumnus knew. With Terence's brilliantly white coat, and luminous mane, the unicorn blended in almost perfectly with the winter wonderland around him. Were it not for his bright blue eyes and dazzling gold horn, Tumnus and Lucy would have hardly been able to distinguish him from the snow at all.

Terence relented. "It's all right, Lucy," he said, lowering his head and touching Lucy's cheek with his soft muzzle, as a sign of love and reassurance. "You just startled me, is all. What are you two doing here, anyhow?"

"Just playing in the snow, is all," said Tumnus.

"Snow?" The unicorn repeated the word like it was foreign. "What's that?"

Tumnus stared at his friend in disbelief, as did Lucy. "Are you serious?" Tumnus asked, after a minute or so of stunned silence. Gesturing at the flurry all around them, the faun went on incredulously, "Haven't you ever seen snow before, Terence?"

Terence shook his head, swishing his long silver-white forelock back and forth. "Nope, never."

"Never?" Lucy echoed.

Again, the unicorn shook his head and repeated, "Never."

"I can't believe it!" Tumnus cried. "You mean to tell me you're a hundred years old—well over a hundred years old—and this is the very first winter you have ever experienced in your whole, entire life?"

"You got it, mate."

"I don't believe it," the faun said a second time. "What kind of world are you from, anyway?"

"Back at my old home, mate, all we ever had was spring. Nothing but green trees and green grass…and there were flowers all over the place, all the time. It was all I had ever known, my whole life, up until now."

"Then you don't know what you've been missing!" Lucy told the stallion, reaching up to catch a falling snowflake in her palm.

Terence glanced around bemusedly at the white flakes that danced about him in the wind.

"It's all right," Lucy reassured him, "the snow won't hurt you." And to prove it, she threw herself down into the snow and lay flat upon her back, moving her arms and legs around to form an angel-like shape. When she leaped to her feet a minute later, she proclaimed, "Look, a snow angel! What do you think?"

"That's wonderful, Lucy!" said Tumnus approvingly.

Terence looked at the imprint Lucy had left in the snow. He then lowered his head and sniffed tentatively at the white powder that surrounded his own hooves. He stuck out his tongue and licked up a small sample of snow, which instantly melted to water in his mouth. The flavor was as sweet and pure as any spring or stream the unicorn had previously drunk from.

When Terence looked up again, he questioned, "Where does all of this come from?"

"It's water, really," Lucy explained, "only it's been frozen." Her young face lit up as she went on, "Snow is great fun to play in! You can make snow angels and snowmen, and there's also snowball fights, snow forts, and all kinds of things!"

"Which reminds me," said Tumnus, with a shrewd glint in his eye. And, so saying, he touched Lucy on the shoulder and declared, "You're it, Lucy!"

With that, he gleefully whirled and dashed away.

"Hey!" Lucy protested. "No fair, Mr. Tumnus!"

He merely laughed, and kept going. Lucy pouted for a moment, but then she couldn't help herself and started laughing also, and she launched herself after the faun.

What they were doing looked like fun to Terence, and so the unicorn joined them.

* * *

Once Terence discovered winter, once the unicorn became accustomed to the snow, it all turned out to be perfectly glorious. The cold, brisk air and the flying snow as the stallion galloped along made his spirits soar and his heart sing.

Soon, he was whooping and cheering every bit as loudly and exuberantly as his friends, if not more so; and his enthusiasm only added fuel to Tumnus and Lucy's enthusiasm.

At one point, Terence charged across a tall ridge at high speed, leaving a plume of scattered snow in his wake. With nothing between him and the sky, the unicorn felt like he was actually flying, like he had wings rather than hooves. In sheer joy the young stallion gave a loud, penetrating whinny and flung his head skyward, tossing his long mane, drinking in hungrily the chill winter breeze that washed over his face like water.

He was so thrilled that he failed to watch where he was going, and the thick snow obscured the fact that he was rapidly heading for a steep edge.

Before he even realized what was happening, he completely lost his footing—and ended up taking a rather nasty drop downward. The very next thing Terence knew, he was skidding and sliding downhill, at a considerable speed. "Whoa!" he yelled out in a loud voice, half excited, half terrified as he went sledding along the sharp slope, unable to stop or control himself.

Way down below, Tumnus and Lucy had just barely arrived at the premises.

Tumnus was the first to notice his mate careening down the hillside, with snow spraying wildly in all directions all around him, and the sight stopped the faun dead in his tracks.

"Hey, what the—?!" he exclaimed.

Lucy stopped at once as well upon seeing Terence riding the snow in their direction. Her eyes widened at the sight, and her jaw dropped.

In an attempt to slow his momentum, Terence stuck out his forehooves in front of him and threw his weight backward.

But it was no good, and it was too late.

As the unicorn passed them by, Tumnus and Lucy simultaneously flung up their arms to shield their faces as an enormous sheet of snow rolled over them both. When Terence finally reached the very bottom of the hill and was at long last able to stand on his own four hooves, he glanced over at his friends to see them both coated from head to shoulder in a generous layer of white. There were even bits of snow on the ends of Tumnus's leaf-shaped ears, and clinging to his curly beard.

Tumnus and Lucy merely stayed where they were and looked at Terence, Tumnus's ears flattened slightly in irritation.

"Whoops," said Terence sheepishly. "Sorry about that, you two."

Lucy was the first to brush the snow away.

As Tumnus swiped the snow from his own honey-brown curls and unshorn face, he inquired of the stallion, "What did you do that for?"

"I dunno," Terence countered, feigning innocence. "Looked like fun, I suppose."

"Oh, yeah," said Lucy, somewhat amusedly. "Lots and lots of fun, I take it."

"Perhaps a little _too_ much fun," Tumnus muttered, as he plucked a chunk of snow from his ear.

* * *

Later, as the threesome were loitering leisurely around a frozen pond, Tumnus suddenly got the idea to play a trick on Terence. "Say, Terence," the faun said ceremoniously, "I'll bet you I can do something that you can't do."

"Oh, really?" said the unicorn, pricking up his ears in interest. "And what is that, mate?"

Gesturing at the pond before them, Tumnus proclaimed, "I can walk on top of the water!"

Terence stared at the faun incredulously for a minute, then broke into a smirk. "Ex-_cuse_ me?"

"Sure, I can," Tumnus insisted.

"Yeah, right," said Terence, shaking his head in disbelief. "You can't do it, Tumnus."

"Yes, I can," the faun repeated self-righteously.

"No, you can't."

"Can."

"Can't."

"Can."

"Can't."

"Can."

"Can't, can't, _can't._"

Placing his hands on his sides and cocking one eyebrow above the other, Tumnus declared, "Oh, yeah? I'll bet you I can make it clear to the other side of this pond without sinking!"

"Okay, then, wise-goat," Terence retorted. "Let's see you try it."

"Okay, then," Tumnus replied, in an uncannily accurate imitation of the unicorn's tone, "I will. Watch this!"

And he promptly leaped out onto the surface of the pond, landing perfectly on his feet—but no sooner had his cloven hooves touched the ice than they immediately slipped out from beneath him, and his goat-stag legs went flying wildly in all directions.

"_Whoa!_" Tumnus exclaimed in surprise and terror, as he felt himself slide uncontrollably about.

He veered sharply to the left, then to the right; then to the right, and then to the left.

He glided this way and that way, for a good several minutes or so, eventually making it successfully but not flawlessly to the other side of the pond—right into a giant bank of snow.

Both Terence and Lucy cringed when they saw the faun crash into the snow. Lucy's hands flew up to cover her eyes, while Terence merely shut his eyes and turned his head to the side.

"Ooooh," they muttered, at the same time.

The very next thing Tumnus knew, he lay spread-eagled upon his front, half-buried in the snow. The faun lay still for just a moment, before rising to an upright position, his face and hair once again covered in white. He spit some of the snow and ice out from his mouth, before turning to face Terence on the other side and calling, somewhat triumphantly, "You see, mate? Nothing to it!"

Lucy now clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle, while Terence just rolled his eyes.

* * *

That same afternoon, as Terence was passing beneath a tall tree, an ice-cold drop landed on top of his nose. With a start, the unicorn drew to a halt and looked up to see a big, beautiful, sparkling cluster of crystal-clear icicles suspended from a thick bough, just above his head. Water dripped downward from the pointed ends.

When Terence stuck out his tongue, a few drops landed on it, crisp and delicious.

Delighted, Terence stood perfectly still for a minute with his eyes closed, his head up and his mouth open, enjoying the sweet taste of the water as it dripped steadily onto his tongue.

Then, on an impulse, the unicorn decided to taste the ice itself.

And so he therefore gave the biggest icicle one great big lick—but then when he tried to pull away again, his tongue was stuck! Startled, Terence wriggled his head about, but it was too late. The icicle was firmly attached to his tongue, and he could not get away.

Whinnying in protest, the stallion tried desperately to loosen his tongue, rocking his head every which way, swaying his whole body from side to side.

For one terrible minute, he feared he would be stuck in this spot forever.

But then, with an almighty wrench of his head, there was a sharp _crack_, and Terence succeeded in breaking the icicle—completely free from the branch! Terence was free, but now he had an enormous chunk of ice wedged in his mouth. He could not talk at all, he could barely make a sound, and his sensitive tongue suffered dreadfully from the severe cold.

Knowing that Tumnus and Lucy would soon find him and see the stupid thing he had just done, Terence stood very tall and straight, holding his head aloft, and walked with dignity, as if he were actually proud of the piece of ice lodged painfully in his mouth.

When he passed by Tumnus and Lucy, who were walking quietly and peaceably along together, the faun and the human girl stopped abruptly upon seeing the unicorn, and stared. As his mouth was full, and as his tongue was temporarily unusable, Terence could not speak a word; but he jauntily pranced past his friends, arching his neck and tossing up his long tail pompously, acting just as though he had planned the whole thing the whole time.

"What in the world—?" he heard Lucy say.

Tumnus merely watched his best mate, who continued on his merry way without once looking back, and then the faun closed his eyes and audibly clapped a hand over his face, shaking his head from side to side in both exasperation and amusement.

Only when Terence was sure he was well out of his friends' sight did he stop and proceed to work the icicle free from his tongue. It took a good five minutes or so, but the unicorn was ultimately able to free himself completely, and he spat the thing aside and sighed immensely, his aching tongue lolling from his mouth like a limp sausage.

"What's going on, Terence?" Tumnus's voice spoke from behind just then.

With a start, the unicorn wheeled around to discover the faun standing right there, with Lucy stationed by his side as usual. Tumnus had his arms crossed in front of him, and he regarded Terence with a knowing look in his eye, one eyebrow cocked slightly higher than the other.

"It'th nothin', Tumnuth," Terence insisted, even though it hurt to talk, and his encounter with the icicle had clearly affected his speech.

"You sound funny, Mr. Terence," Lucy commented. "Are you all right?"

"It'th nothin', Luthy. I'm fine. Everythin' ith perfectly fine."

"You don't thound fine to me, Mithter Terenth," said Tumnus, in a rather droll imitation of his mate. "Ith thith the way unicornth talk nowadayth? And how about that big ithicle you—"

"Okay, okay! Tho I wath thtupid enough to lick a piethe of ithe, and my tongue got thtuck," Terence snapped at the faun. To both his companions, he demanded, "You thatithfied?"

"Depends on your definition of 'satisfaction', mate," said Tumnus smoothly, now in his regular speaking voice.

Lucy shook her head bemusedly at Terence. "You silly unicorn," was all she said.

"Don't worry, mate," said Tumnus. "This is not the first time you have done something stupid before in your life, and I am more than convinced that it shall not be the last."

Terence leveled off his ears and merely grumbled, "Very funny, Tumnuth."

Changing the subject, Lucy announced to her friends, "Come on, everyone; let's head back to Cair Paravel for some hot cocoa and cookies."

Tumnus nodded wholeheartedly. "Sounds like a plan to me, Lucy!"


	2. Under the Weather

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story numero two! This one takes place when Terence is in his human form. Like I said, my character will bounce between the two roles throughout the series. And again, these are not written in chronological order. One story will take place here, another will take place there. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY TWO:  
UNDER THE WEATHER**

Generally, Tumnus was an exceptionally healthy faun—but as it is with everybody (both humans and non-humans), there came a time every now and again where he slipped under the weather. One day in particular found the young faun lying in bed in his cave, due to a nasty fever. It wasn't life-threatening, of course, but it was certainly no picnic, either.

In spite of the number of blankets heaped on top of him, Tumnus still shivered with cold. His joints ached, his throat felt like sandpaper, and his voice came out hoarse whenever he tried to speak.

That day, his best friends Terence and Lucy Pevensie were looking after him and caring for him. While Terence brought the faun tea (with a little honey mixed in, to help Tumnus's throat), little Lucy stayed at Tumnus's bedside and kept him company. She held his hand, spoke softly to him, and bathed his scorched forehead with cool water.

Though he hated being sick, Tumnus was glad to have his friends with him, and it touched his heart that they would willingly spend the day with him, when they could be off doing more pleasurable things.

Around lunchtime, Lucy read to Tumnus from a book that she had brought with her. Now, of course, Tumnus had plenty of books of his own, but Lucy brought a book that contained what she called "fairy tales". Tumnus was quite intrigued by the stories of Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel, and the Golden Goose, and the like.

Lucy had already read him Sleeping Beauty, Rumpelstiltskin, and Hansel and Gretel, and now she read him the story of Cinderella.

Tumnus listened with rapt attention as the child narrated the tale of a poor orphaned girl forced to work as a servant in her very own house. When Lucy told of how Cinderella wept because she was unable to attend a grand ball due to the many chores and duties that were heaped upon her frail shoulders, Tumnus couldn't help crying himself.

He listened with wonder as Lucy read of how Cinderella's "fairy godmother" appeared to her in the midst of her distress and used her special magic to give the girl a magnificent carriage and a beautiful gown, of how Cinderella danced with the prince at the ball, and how she lost her glass slipper when she was compelled to flee the ball at midnight; and the faun's heart was filled with warmth when they reached the end: where the prince journeyed far and wide to find the maiden whose foot fit into that slipper, and the slipper fit only Cinderella, and Cinderella ultimately became the prince's wife, as well as princess over all the land.

"Amazing," Tumnus rasped, when Lucy finished the story. "Incredible, really; how such a poor, helpless girl wades through so much sorrow and suffering—and in the end, everything turns out all right for her."

Lucy said, "My mum always used to say that, even through hard times, if you look on the bright side and believe in yourself, things will turn out all right in the end. She also used to say that hope is always the best medicine in the world."

"I do hope your mother is right," said Tumnus huskily, his lips curved in a wry smile, "because I could certainly use that kind of medicine."

At that time, Terence stepped into the room, carrying a large tray. "I have just the thing," he said, having overheard. "Tea with fresh honey, toast with boysenberry jam, and Mrs. Beaver's famous root vegetable soup. She claims this kind of soup will cure anything."

Tumnus slowly shifted himself to a semi-sitting position, grunting slightly from the dull pains in his joints, as Terence set the tray down on a small table next to the bed. Sure enough, there was a cup of piping hot tea, a bowl of piping hot soup, and several slices of toast on a plate. Terence had also brought in the teapot and some extra honey and a tureen of additional soup, just in case Tumnus wanted more.

Tumnus found the aromas soothing. "Thank you, Terence," he rasped.

He reached for the soup spoon, but Lucy stopped him.

"Wait, Mr. Tumnus," she said, "let me help you."

Tumnus looked into the girl's eyes, and saw a motherly look in their depths that went straight to his heart. With tears pricking at his own eyes, he whispered, "All right, Lucy."

So Lucy held the bowl of soup in one hand and used the other hand to feed Tumnus, just as she would feed a baby. She would scoop up a spoonful of soup, blow gently on it to cool it, and then hold the spoon to Tumnus's lips while he slurped it up.

She continued to do this until the bowl was empty, and then Tumnus quietly asked for more. It wasn't really so much the soup itself he wanted, as it was what Lucy was doing for him.

So, Terence replenished the bowl, and Lucy did the same thing again.

Tumnus had two more helpings of soup, and Lucy also helped him drink his tea, and he managed two or three pieces of toast, and soon he was feeling quite pleasantly full.

After he had eaten, Lucy spent the rest of the afternoon entertaining him with stories and jokes, and a little show that she improvised herself (with Terence playing along), and Tumnus actually found himself laughing out loud. He was amazed at how good the laughter made him feel.

When suppertime came around, Terence served more of Mrs. Beaver's special soup, and Lucy spoon-fed Tumnus again; and for dessert, Terence served them all slices of fresh, cool, sweet peaches. Tumnus never would have believed that peaches could taste so heavenly.

Later, when Lucy touched Tumnus's forehead to check on his fever, she was pleased to find that his skin was considerably cooler than before. And his face no longer appeared quite so pale. Wow, Lucy thought, Mrs. Beaver's soup sure worked fast!

When it came time for bed, Terence offered to stay at the cave for the night in case Tumnus needed anything. Lucy insisted on staying as well, so Tumnus told her she could have the guest room, and Terence decided to camp out in the parlor.

Just before Tumnus drifted off to sleep, he gave Lucy a one-armed hug and clasped Terence's hand, saying, "Thank you, Terence. Thank you, Lucy. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. You both have been so kind to me today. I don't know what I would do without either of you."

"And we don't know what we'd do without you, Mr. Tumnus," said Lucy.

And she leaned over and gave Tumnus a kiss on the cheek.

Terence squeezed the faun's shoulder reassuringly, and he and Lucy left the room together, while Tumnus closed his eyes and settled down for what he knew would be a very good night's sleep.

"Gee, Mr. Terence," said Lucy, "Mrs. Beaver's soup must be magical! Mr. Tumnus is looking better already. At this rate, he'll be back on his feet in no time."

Terence smiled at the girl and said kindly, "I doubt it was just the soup alone, Lucy."

Realizing what he meant, a smile spread across Lucy's face, and she felt a tingly warmth in her chest. Perhaps Terence was right. Perhaps it _was_ more than just the soup.

Perhaps stories and company—and friends, and love—were good medicine, too.


	3. The Missing Flute

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story number three! Yet another story that takes place when Terence is in his human form. I took an especial pleasure out of writing this one. Read, and please tell me what you think! _

_Three stories down, 97 to go! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY THREE:  
THE MISSING FLUTE**

If there was one thing in the entire world Tumnus loved and was wholly and completely passionate about, it was music. Being a faun, music to him was like nectar to a honeybee, or like sunlight to a flower. He simply couldn't live without it.

His most prized possession (aside from his red woolen scarf) was a beautiful two-pronged flute, carefully crafted out of the finest mahogany, and as smooth as glass. It had belonged to his father, as well as his grandfather, and he treasured it all the more dearly.

Tumnus always played that flute every chance he got, and the music he produced seemed to make the very flowers and the very leaves within the trees dance.

Everyone admired Tumnus's flute, especially his friends Lucy (a young human girl) and Terence (a young unicorn recently turned human, with shining white hair and a shining white beard), and they often joined along in the dancing when Tumnus played it.

One day, when Tumnus took out his case to play his flute, he saw, to his surprise and horror, that the flute was gone! Somehow, it had been removed from its case, or it had never been put away to begin with—but Tumnus was _sure_ he'd put it away the last time he used it!

The faun then spent the next hour or so rummaging frantically through his cave, probing every nook and cranny, searching every imaginable hiding place, but his flute was nowhere to be found. Tumnus even scoured through the cold ashes in his fireplace, but no such luck.

His flute was lost, and he had no idea where in the world it could possibly be.

That same afternoon, Terence showed up at Tumnus's cave for tea, and he found one very twitchy faun waiting for him. Tumnus allowed Terence to come inside, and he got out the tea things as usual, but he was so fidgety and shaky that it was a miracle he didn't drop everything onto the floor, and that he managed to get the tea into the cups without spilling it.

"Hey, Tumnus, what's wrong?" asked Terence, knowing right away that his best mate was distressed about something. "Are you okay? Is everything okay?"

"Oh, Terence, it's terrible!" Tumnus groaned, sinking his head into his hands. "My flute is missing, and I don't know where I can possibly find it!"

"Your flute?" Terence repeated.

"Yes, my flute!" said the aggravated faun. "What am I going to do, Terence? That flute means everything to me! My father gave it to me when I was a child, and my grandfather gave it to my father when _he_ was a child. It's all I have left of either of them. What am I going to do?"

"Maybe you just misplaced your flute somewhere," Terence insinuated.

"But I couldn't have!" Tumnus protested. "I always put that thing in its proper place when I am not using it! I _know _I put it away the last time I had it within my possession. I distinctly remember placing it into the case. Furthermore," he continued, indicating the cushions and books that were scattered about, "I have already torn my home apart, from top to bottom, and that thing is nowhere to be found. Someone must have stolen it from me!"

"Stolen it?" Terence echoed incredulously. "Who'd steal from _you_, mate?"

"I don't know!" Tumnus nearly shouted, clearly nearing the end of his rope. "But there's no other explanation for the loss of my flute! Someone _had _to have taken it!"

"That's rubbish," said Terence, speaking so sternly that it startled Tumnus. "You don't know for sure that someone could have taken that old flute. There's always a chance you could have simply lost the thing, by pure mistake. Don't go around jumping to conclusions before you know all the facts, Tumnus. Now, get a hold of yourself."

Tumnus said no more after that, and he and Terence ate and drank in silence, and later Terence went quietly on his way, thanking Tumnus rather distractedly for the tea.

But Tumnus could not get over the loss of his flute, nor could he banish from his mind the notion of it being stolen. He paced the floor long after Terence had left, his hooves clattering hollowly, his hands folded behind his back. The more the young faun thought about it, the more he realized that the possibility of someone stealing his flute was _very_ likely.

But who could have done it? Who could the culprit be? Which of all Tumnus's friends, which of all the creatures living in the Western Woods—or in all of the world—could have done such a thing?

Certainly one of his own mates wouldn't stoop to such a level.

Or would they?

Tumnus knew how much his friends liked his flute, and how much they enjoyed the music it produced. Could one of them have secretly sneaked into his cave and taken the flute when he wasn't around? Or could one of them have snatched it away during a visit, while his back was turned? These scenarios swirled around relentlessly in Tumnus's head, like a dog pursuing its own tail, nearly driving the faun out of his mind.

He _had_ to find out who the culprit was!

Tumnus swore to himself there and then that he would track down that culprit, and take back what was rightfully his, if it was the last thing he ever did!

But as the days passed, and there were still no signs of Tumnus's flute (nor any sufficient evidence to convict anyone), Tumnus began to falter in his resolve. He continued to look around for his beloved flute, both inside and outside his cave, asking the animals of the Western Woods if they had seen his flute anywhere at all—but to no avail.

After two solid weeks, Tumnus began to lose hope of ever finding his flute, and of ever discovering the identity of the perpetrator.

Then one day, while the faun was visiting a social gathering at Castle Cair Paravel, he noticed Terence standing in a corner of the main hall, speaking privately with Beaver and a couple of dwarves. They were speaking in hushed tones, but edging a bit closer, Tumnus's keen ears caught the words "flute" and "Tumnus".

This immediately snagged his attention, like a hook snagging a fish, and the faun secretly sidled a little closer so that he could hear better.

"It's all right," he heard Terence mutter, "Tumnus doesn't suspect a thing."

What was this? Tumnus wondered suspiciously. Just what did Terence mean by "_Tumnus doesn't suspect a thing_"? What was his best mate up to?

"Leave everything to me," Terence continued. "Remember, keep quiet about this as best you can. If Tumnus finds out what I have done, it'll spoil everything."

Upon hearing this, Tumnus promptly turned away. He'd heard enough.

As the faun walked stiffly across the crowded hall, his shock and disbelief over what Terence had said just now dissolved into red-hot anger. So, Terence was the one behind all this! Why, that double-crossing, deceitful, disingenuous little scoundrel!

Tumnus would never have believed that his mate had the capability of doing such a thing. He would never have dreamed of Terence being a thief.

But now he knew the truth, and the realization added fuel to the faun's anger.

If Terence thought he was going to get away with this, he was sorely mistaken!

_I'll show him! _Tumnus thought, seizing a pastry from the refreshment table and mashing it with one hand into a pulp. _He thinks that I would never figure this out, that he can get off scot-free. Well, he's got another thing coming! _

Tumnus wanted to lash out at Terence right then and there, but instead he bridled his temper and restrained himself, telling himself inwardly to wait until the moment was just right. He would wait until everyone was watching them, and then he would reveal what Terence had done, for all ears to hear. He wanted to disgrace that nasty little crook publicly, make that sniveling rogue pay dearly for his theft.

A few minutes later, when Terence sought Tumnus out, Tumnus noticed that the man carried a box in his hand. The box was quite small, but it looked to be the perfect size for a little musical instrument. "Hey, Tumnus," said Terence, when he caught up with the faun.

"Hello, Terence," said Tumnus icily.

Terence was taken aback by the antagonism in the faun's tone and facial expression. "Hey, what's wrong, mate?" he asked bewilderedly. "Is there some kind of problem?"

"I should think so," said Tumnus, his teal-blue eyes shooting daggers at him.

Terence faltered. "Well…what is it?" he questioned, after an uneasy moment.

"I'd rather not say," said Tumnus, the truth of which was, of course, the exact opposite.

"Come on, Tumnus, you can tell me anything," Terence insisted, "I'm your best mate."

"Best mate? Ha!" Tumnus scoffed.

Now Terence was looking completely baffled. "What's this? What's going on, Tumnus?"

Several onlookers were beginning to take notice of them. That was just what Tumnus had been hoping for. "I thought I could always rely on you, Terence," he said. "I thought I could depend on you. I gave you my trust, my hope." His voice rose significantly in volume and intensity as he went on, "And this is how you deal with me? By stealing?"

The word "stealing" and the harsh way Tumnus spoke it caught many ears, and soon nearly all eyes in the entire hall were focused entirely upon the faun and the white-haired human.

The look on Terence's face was one of pure shock. "What are you saying, Tumnus?" he asked disbelievingly, when he had regained sufficient use of his tongue and could speak. "I would never steal from you! I'd never do such an awful thing!"

"And now you insult me with your lies," Tumnus said scathingly.

"What?" Terence gasped, his already bulging eyes widening even more.

"Hey, what's the trouble here?" spoke up Fox, as he emerged from the crowd.

"The trouble?" Tumnus pointed an accusing finger at Terence. "The trouble is _him!_"

"Terence?" said Fox confusedly. "What has Terence done to you?"

"He stole my flute!"

Several gasps sounded from the crowd at this indictment.

Fox was stunned. "Is this true?" he questioned the faun.

"I heard him with my own ears!" Tumnus said heatedly, which aroused several more astonished gasps from the onlookers that surrounded them.

Fox now shifted his attention to Terence. "Terence, how could you?" he demanded. "How could you do something like this?"

"I have done nothing of the sort!" said Terence, now getting angry himself. To Tumnus, he said, "You know me better than that, Tumnus! You _should _know better!"

"Yes, I should know better," Tumnus answered, scorn dripping from his voice like venom. "I should know better than to be friends with a lying, deceitful pickpocket like you!"

"I am not a lying, deceitful pickpocket!" Terence shot back. "How dare you call me such a name!"

"Tell us what's in the box," the faun commanded, gesturing toward the box that Terence still clutched in his hand. "Does that box contain anything that belongs to me?"

"Does it, Terence?" Fox probed.

"Yes," said the white-haired youth tersely, after a brief pause, "yes, it does."

"There, you see?" Tumnus declared to everyone else. "He admits it! By his own mouth, he confesses that this very box contains—"

"—your gift," Terence cut in.

Upon hearing this, Tumnus's anger immediately drained away, like water from a spigot, and he faltered. "My…what?" he asked softly, after a minute or so of stunned silence. He and Fox and everyone else stared at Terence in complete disbelief, unable to speak or move.

"Your gift," repeated Terence. His voice was low, and quivering slightly with hurt as well as anger. "I made you a new flute, to replace the one you'd lost." While he spoke, he removed the lid and held the box out for Tumnus and all the others to see.

Sure enough, a beautiful ivory flute lay within the box, nestled on a blanket of red velvet.

Tumnus caught his breath at the sight. "You…you made me a new flute?" he managed to stammer, reaching out with a shaky hand and taking the box from Terence.

"Beaver and a couple of dwarves helped me to fashion it," Terence said brusquely. "We worked on it all week. I intended to give it to you later on today, as a surprise."

The whole hall was filled with utter silence. No one knew what to say.

Tumnus gingerly picked up the flute and held it between his trembling fingers. It was as smooth as the inside of a seashell, and it scarcely weighed more than a feather. The craftsmanship was splendid, and looking closer, Tumnus could see it even had his name inscribed on one side, in small yet elegant calligraphy.

After a time, the bewildered faun tentatively lifted one end of the flute to his lips and tested the thing out. The musical notes he produced were at once clear as rainwater, and as lovely as birdsong. The sweet sound entranced all who heard it.

When Tumnus ceased to play, he stared at the flute once more, still unable to get over Terence's thoughtfulness and generosity on his behalf, and said in a hushed voice, "Oh, Terence…Terence, this is…this is…I…I really don't know what to…"

And then he looked up and saw, to his distress, that Terence was walking away.

"Terence?" the faun called. "Hey, Terence, where are you going?"

Without stopping or looking back, Terence replied coldly, "I'm leaving, while I still have what's left of my dignity."

Tumnus hesitated for only about a thousandth of a second before crying out, "Terence, wait!"

He promptly rushed after the white-haired human. Everyone else stayed put and watched the faun pursue the young human.

Terence marched briskly out of the hall and half-jogged down the stairway leading outside the palace. The breeze that greeted him felt soothingly cool to his face, which burned red-hot with indignation and humiliation and deep hurt. Behind him, he heard Tumnus's hooves clatter hollowly on the marble steps, but he neither stopped nor slowed down. He just kept going.

"Terence, wait!" he heard Tumnus call desperately after him. "Terence!"

Terence dug the back of his wrist into his face to brush away the moisture that lingered in his eyes, and forced himself to walk faster.

Eventually, as they were crossing the main courtyard, Tumnus caught up with Terence, and he seized Terence by the elbow to stop him. "Get off me," Terence commanded, jerking his arm free from the faun's grasp, none too gently.

He started to walk again, but Tumnus moved swiftly ahead of him and grabbed hold of his shoulders. "Terence, wait," Tumnus pleaded again, his eyes and tone full of penitence, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I accused you, and I'm sorry I humiliated you publicly like that."

"Oh, save your precious breath, goat boy, while you still have it," said Terence sarcastically.

"Terence, please," said Tumnus contritely, "I'm so sorry. I should have controlled myself better back there. I should have used better judgment. I'm sorry, Terence. Truly, I am."

"Get out of my way, Tumnus," Terence commanded. "You have done quite more than enough for one day. You have already disgraced me in front of the entire assembly at Cair Paravel. You lost your flute, I lost my reputation, that makes us even. Now, stand aside."

But Tumnus refused to let Terence by.

"No, Terence," the repentant faun implored, "please don't go." Tumnus's teal-colored eyes glistened with tears, and his voice broke with emotion as he went on, "It's bad enough that I'd lost my old flute. I don't want to lose my old friend, too. Please forgive me, Terence, please!"

Before either he or Terence could say anything more, however, King Edmund the Just appeared right then. Unaware of what was going on, the young king made a beeline to the two young men and said, "Hey, Mr. Tumnus, I believe this is yours."

The boy held out a small wooden object to the faun, and Tumnus's jaw dropped.

It was his old flute! And not only was it still in one piece, but it looked even better than ever.

"My flute!" Tumnus said with a gasp. "Where…where did you get it, King Edmund?"

"I found it lying on the grass under a tree, in one of the courtyards," Edmund explained. "You must have left it there while you were visiting with us, and forgotten all about it. Because it looks so much like a fallen branch, no one else had noticed it. I found it just the other day, while I was out with Lucy. I know how much your old flute means to you, and so I cleaned it up myself and polished it, and now I'm returning it to you. Go on, Mr. Tumnus, take it."

Tumnus stared at Edmund, complete astonishment represented prominently in his every feature. Slowly, the faun began to stretch forth his hand to take his old flute back—but then he stopped himself. He looked at the old flute, then at the new ivory flute he held within his other hand, and then at Terence, who had his back facing them with his arms crossed in front of him.

After a time, Tumnus finally made Edmund close his own fingers over the old flute, saying quietly, "No…it's all right. You may keep this, King Edmund. I already have a flute. A very, very special flute, one that my best friend in the whole world gave to me."

Terence glanced over his shoulder at Tumnus, his expression softened to some extent.

"Are you sure, Mr. Tumnus?" Edmund queried. "This did used to belong to your father and your grandfather."

"I know that," said Tumnus mildly. Holding up the little ivory flute, he continued, "But Terence willingly went to all the trouble to have this new flute made just for me."

Terence lifted his head a little higher upon hearing this.

Tumnus explained to Edmund everything that happened in the hall earlier, and when he was through, he went on, his face growing increasingly sadder as he spoke, "I should have trusted Terence better. How could I have been so quick to judge him? How could I think that he, the very best and truest friend any faun had ever known, could steal from me? How could I ever accuse him of being a thief?"

Terence said nothing, but he stayed where he was, listening intently to every word.

A solitary tear spilled down Tumnus's cheek as he continued mournfully, "How could I value my flute more than him? How could I let some material possession become more important to me than our friendship? Oh, I'm such a terrible faun…and a terrible friend at that."

He now shifted his weepy gaze to Terence and entreated, "Forgive me, Terence. You have done me nothing but kindness, and I betrayed you. I was a fool, and a complete idiot. Please forgive me, and please tell me we can still be friends. Please, Terence, I don't know what I would do without you."

Terence merely looked into Tumnus's anguished face, realizing the sincerity of the faun's apology, acknowledging the substantiality of Tumnus's plea.

At a loss for words, Terence averted his gaze and slowly turned his face away.

Tumnus, misinterpreting the young man's silence and inattention, closed his eyes and bowed his head in grief. He very slowly and very dejectedly began to trot off in the opposite direction, with his shoulders drooped and his head hanging freely to his chest, but he'd barely taken five steps when Terence finally spoke to him: "Tumnus."

The faun stopped and tearfully looked back, and Terence drew up to him and gently slipped his arms around the faun's bare shoulders, embracing Tumnus like a brother.

Though no other words were spoken, Tumnus knew right away that he was forgiven, and this brought fresh tears coursing down his face. He impulsively squeezed Terence back, burying his head in the young man's shoulder to muffle the sobs that poured out of him, his tears staining the fabric of Terence's clothing. But Terence didn't care. He stayed right where he was and allowed Tumnus to cling to him, making no attempt whatsoever to pull away.

"Awwww," said a chorus of voices.

Tumnus looked up at once upon hearing this, tears clouding his vision. Terence looked up as well, and they both saw that nearly everyone in the entire castle had ventured outside and was now watching them, clearly moved by the display of affection between the young faun and the young silver-haired human. Fox and Beaver were among the throng.

Embarrassed at being caught crying like a child, Tumnus hastily ducked his head and attempted to brush his tears away with his hand.

"Here, try this," Terence whispered, extracting a handkerchief. "It's much more absorbent."

Tumnus accepted the handkerchief with thanks, and dutifully proceeded in mopping up his wet face. When he finally looked up, face dry, he gazed into Terence's eyes and asked solicitously, "How can I make this up to you, Terence? What must I do to compensate for my rash behavior, and my poor treatment of you? Name it. I'll do anything."

A meaningful smile crossed Terence's face. "There is one thing you can do, Tumnus."

"What is it?" Tumnus besought. "Tell me."

Terence's answer came in two simple words: "Start playing."

Tumnus looked at his friend quizzically. "What?"

"Start playing," Terence repeated, motioning toward the faun's ivory flute.

Realizing what he meant, a smile spread across Tumnus's face as well, and the faun obligingly took his new flute and proceeded to play a lively, heartening melody.

While Tumnus played, his legs and hooves seemed to take on a mind of their own, and before he knew it, he was dancing and prancing merrily about, like there was no tomorrow. Terence enthusiastically joined along in the upbeat jig; and one by one, Fox and Beaver and everyone else in the courtyard, including Edmund, participated also.

They all spent the rest of the afternoon frolicking and capering and cavorting together, as jubilantly as they would at any real ball, and when evening drew near, they were still dancing.


	4. Snowball Fight

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story four, as well as another story that takes place at Christmastime! This is a little like my first story, only with a few tweaks here and there. Hope ya like! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY FOUR:  
SNOWBALL FIGHT**

It was Christmas at Castle Cair Paravel.

The air was crisp and chill. Nearly everything was covered in a solid blanket of sparkling white snow. Long, clear icicles hung from the branches of the trees that surrounded the castle.

King Peter the Magnificent, King Edmund the Just, and Queen Susan the Gentle—the renowned Children of Adam and Eve, and the regal monarchs of Narnia—all opted to stay in the warm, dry castle. But Queen Lucy the Valiant, the youngest monarch, was out and about, enjoying the snow and the refreshingly cold air.

And she wasn't the only one.

A considerable number of young Narnians—young fauns, young nymphs, young satyrs, unicorn foals, and centaur colts; as well as baby rabbits, baby foxes, baby raccoons, baby beavers, leopard cubs, puppies, and many other furry four-legged tots—were scampering here and there in the snow, shrieking and laughing and having a marvelous time.

They wrestled playfully with one another, they chased one another about, and they helped one another build snow figures and snow forts.

Some of the little ones hiked up snowy mounds and enjoyed a thrilling slide downhill, right into a big yet delightfully soft bank of snow at the bottom.

And not everyone who was outside that day was a child.

Tumnus the faun, who was quite grown-up, was also enjoying the wintry weather. His red woolen scarf hung jauntily about his neck and shoulders, and he leaned casually against a frost-encrusted tree and watched with fondness as little Queen Lucy participated in a game of tag with a centaur filly, a young vixen, and a couple of rabbits.

While Tumnus kept an eye on the girls, Tumnus's best friend Terence, a young unicorn who had been recently turned into a young human with silvery white hair, came strolling by.

Terence stopped abruptly when he saw Tumnus, and a wicked idea popped into his head. Without making a sound, the white-haired youth crouched down and scooped up a double handful of snow, packing it into a tight ball.

And then he silently wound up and hurled the ball at Tumnus with all his might. His aim was perfect, and he scored a direct hit on the back of the faun's head.

"Hey!" Tumnus exclaimed, startled.

He immediately whirled around, and Terence deliberately looked away from his stag-legged friend, whistling a casual tune, as if nothing out of the ordinary were happening.

Tumnus frowned at him. "Don't go acting all innocent around me, Terence," he said sternly, "I know it was you who did that!"

"Did what?" asked Terence, feigning ignorance.

"You know very well what," the faun retorted. "I got pelted by a snowball just now, and I know snowballs don't simply fly out of nowhere."

Terence cocked an eyebrow at his best mate. "Oh, really? Did the snowball look anything like this?" And so saying, he chucked a second snowball he'd just packed together at Tumnus.

This time, he hit Tumnus squarely in the face, nearly knocking the faun off balance.

Tumnus merely brushed the snow out of his eyes and spit out from his mouth a small chunk of ice that had become imbedded in the ball, saying, "Yes. Yes, it did."

Terence just burst out laughing.

Tumnus leveled off his ears. _So, that's how he wants it to go down, _he thought to himself. Out loud, he said, "Okay, mister—time for a little dosage of your own medicine."

And before Terence could react, Tumnus had scooped up a handful of snow and made a snowball of his very own. Tumnus pitched the snowball at Terence as hard as he could, and ended up striking his mate squarely in the chest.

Rubbing his sore chest, Terence declared to the faun, "You have just delivered a counterattack, goat-foot! Then it's officially war!"

"You're going down, graybeard!" Tumnus shot back, getting into the gig.

And within seconds, the friends had launched into a full-blown snowball battle.

The faun and the silver-haired human pursued one another about, occasionally taking shelter behind a tree or a bush, and assaulting one another mercilessly with snowballs.

Once Terence threw a snowball at Tumnus, but failed to hit him, and Tumnus gloated, "Ha, ha! You missed me, you old gray—" But then the young faun was instantly silenced when a fresh snowball from Terence clobbered him on the side of the head.

Now it was Terence's turn to gloat. "Score one for the big man, goat-foot!" he proclaimed.

The snowball war between the two continued, growing progressively wilder and more hedonistic by the minute, until eventually Lucy showed up.

"Mr. Tumnus, Mr. Terence, what are you—" she began, but the rest of her sentence was cut off when Tumnus ducked to avoid yet another snowball that Terence hurled at him, and the snowball ended up pelting Lucy instead.

The unexpected blow caused the young queen to stumble, and she lost her balance and fell over into a pile of snow. "Oomph!"

When Tumnus and Terence saw this, they both ceased fire at once and fled to her side. "Lucy! Oh, my gosh!" Terence gasped, fearing he might have injured the little girl in his recklessness.

"Oh, Lucy, are you all right?" Tumnus asked anxiously, falling to his knees in the snow next to her and gathering her gently into his arms.

Luckily, Lucy wasn't hurt—baffled, but not hurt. She simply blinked away the little flakes of snow that clung to her eyelashes and gazed up into Tumnus's worried face, inquiring, "What's going on, Mr. Tumnus?"

Seeing that she was uninjured, Terence and Tumnus both heaved a deep sigh of relief at the exact same time.

"I'm sorry, Lucy," Tumnus said, helping the child to her feet and brushing the snow from her.

"No, Lucy, _I'm_ sorry," interjected Terence. "That last shot came from me, so it's my fault. We were engaged in a little snowball fight, and I…sort of got carried away."

"A snowball fight, eh?" Lucy sounded genuinely interested.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Tumnus asked, resting his palm alongside Lucy's cheek and surveying her with gentle concern.

Terence added sheepishly, "I suppose I ought to do something to make up for laying into you like that, Lucy."

"Yes, you should, Mr. Terence," said Lucy. She bent down to dig up some snow, packed it all together to make a circular shape, and then she lobbed the whole thing into Terence's face.

"Hey, what the—?!" Terence cried, taken aback.

"Now we are even!" Lucy said gleefully.

As Terence bemusedly wiped the bits of snow from his face, Tumnus chortled, "Ha! She really got you good, Terence!"

And then the faun jumped a mile as Lucy smacked _him _with a snowball.

"Score two!" Lucy laughed.

Her friends both looked at her shrewdly. "Oh, so you want to play dirty, do you?" Terence commented. He turned to Tumnus. "What say you, Tumnus, old mate?"

Tumnus gave a nod of concurrence and pronounced, "It's war!"

Lucy giggled and promptly took off running in the opposite direction.

"You're in deep trouble, missy!" Terence called roguishly, as he and Tumnus simultaneously launched themselves after her.

"Only if you can catch me, first!" she called back.


	5. Food Fight

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story five! A word of forewarning to you readers: do not proceed any further unless you've got a sense of humor, because major, major hilarity lies ahead! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY FIVE:  
FOOD FIGHT**

Tumnus the faun was in his kitchen, gathering ingredients together to make himself a cake, when he heard a distinct pounding on his front door. It sounded like someone was attempting to kick his door down.

And Tumnus had a shrewd suspicion of who that "someone" was.

"I'm coming," he called, as he trotted toward the front door.

The pounding noise persisted.

"I said, I'm coming!" Tumnus called again, a little louder this time. He groped for the key that accessed his door, and when he unlocked the lock and dragged the heavy wooden door aside, he saw that his visitor was Terence, the unicorn—just as he'd suspected.

"Hey, Tumnus!" Terence greeted him brightly. He looked and sounded like he was in a very good mood that morning.

Instead of saying hello in return, Tumnus just shook his head and said to the unicorn, "Terence, I really wish you wouldn't kick my front door so hard. You'll kick it right off the hinges one of these days."

"Sorry, Tumnus," said the unicorn, sounding only somewhat apologetic. "What'cha doing?"

"Baking," said Tumnus simply.

The unicorn's lazuline eyes lit up with interest. "Ooooh, can I come in and watch?"

"Why? I'm just preparing a cake, is all. It's nothing spectacular, really."

"Come on, Tumnus," the unicorn begged. "Please? I won't be in the way. I just want to watch and see how it's all done, see just what it takes to make a cake."

Tumnus thought about it for a minute, and then he gave in. "Oh, all right. Come on in."

He stepped aside and held the door wide open, and Terence proudly promenaded into the cave that was the faun's home, his long mane and tail shining like liquid moonlight, his gold hooves tinkling on the floor like distant bells.

Tumnus led the way into the kitchen.

"This is great," said Terence, as he trailed along in the faun's wake. "I have seen plenty of cakes before, but I never saw one actually being made from scratch."

"Yes, I know," Tumnus replied sardonically. "And you never had a baking lesson in your life."

"With hooves in place of hands, and being a vegetarian by nature, why would I have needed one?"

"Okay, Terence," said Tumnus, once they were both in the kitchen, "it's really all a matter of having the correct elements, and then combining all those elements together into one."

"How do you know you have the right stuff?" Terence questioned.

"You follow the directions in here." Tumnus held up a cookbook for the unicorn to see.

"Well, obviously, I can't read," said Terence, "so you're going to have to show me, Tumnus."

"I knew you were going to say that," said the faun, who in contrast was an avid reader and needed books the way other creatures needed food and water.

Consulting the recipe for the cake he wanted, Tumnus said, "The first thing you need to make a cake, particularly this kind of cake, is some flour. Already have that taken care of!" He motioned toward a bulky sack of flour perched on the counter.

"You're going to use this whole sack for one cake?" asked Terence incredulously.

This made Tumnus laugh. "No, silly! Just three cups' worth." He held up a small cup for the unicorn to see, and then he used that cup to scoop up some of the flour out of the bag and empty it into a large bowl. He did this two more times, and then he turned to the cookbook again. "Now, we must separate two eggs."

"Separate them?" Terence echoed. "You mean, put one egg in one room and put the other in another room?"

Again, Tumnus laughed, and shook his head no. "To separate an egg, Terence, means to separate the contents within—to keep the white apart from the yellow." He showed the unicorn how to do this correctly, and Terence gave a nod of understanding.

Tumnus then added several other ingredients to the bowl, such as milk and sugar and butter, and soon he had a wet, goopy, gooey, mostly colorless paste.

While he stirred rapidly, Terence leaned a little closer to get a better look, and Tumnus, in his haste, accidentally splashed some of the batter into the unicorn's face.

"Hey!" Terence cried, taking a few steps back at once.

Tumnus immediately stopped stirring, and when he looked at Terence and saw the ooze running down his friend's face, he honestly couldn't help breaking out into a smirk.

The faun's smirk became an audible laugh, and it wasn't long before his laughter became hysterical.

"Oh, you think that's funny, do you?" inquired Terence, as the cool slime continued to dribble down his face and muzzle, dripping off the end of his long white goatee.

Tumnus was laughing too hard to answer. He slowly sank to the floor, clutching his sides and positively howling with laughter, his eyes brimming with tears, his face flushed bright red.

Terence stood over him and watched him for a time, and when at long last Tumnus managed to pull himself together and settle down and breathe normally again, Terence told him, "Okay, wise goat, let's see how you like it done to you!"

Tumnus's eyes widened at the realization of Terence's intentions.

"Don't you dare!" he exclaimed, but it was too late. Terence had already knocked the bowl sideways with his horn, and all of the rest of the batter came spilling out, pouring all over Tumnus and getting completely in the faun's face and curly hair and leaf-shaped ears.

Terence then used his horn to knock over the sack of flour, causing the flour to promptly cascade down onto the faun as well. The flour clung to the wet batter, and made a rather incredible mess.

When Tumnus finally arose from the floor, appearing as white as a ghost, the upper half of his body nearly completely covered in glop, he glared at Terence through the sticky plaster that masked his face and declared to the unicorn, "This means war!"

And so saying, the faun seized a couple of leftover eggs from the counter and hurled them both in Terence's face at the same time. _Crack!_

The next thing Terence knew, cold, slick, yellowy yolk was dripping steadily down his face.

"Oh, yeah?" the unicorn taunted. "Two can play at that game!"

Terence then snatched up a bag of sugar with his teeth and emptied the whole thing over Tumnus's head, so Tumnus now had sugar sticking to him in addition to the flour.

Tumnus paid Terence back for this by dumping an entire pitcher of milk on him.

In no time at all, both faun and unicorn were totally caught up in a full-fledged food fight, depositing everything within their reach onto one another, and managing to mess up Tumnus's kitchen as well as each other.

This kept up for a good half-hour or so, and when Terence and Tumnus both finally ran out of ammunition, and were compelled to call a truce, Tumnus (now almost unrecognizable through the layers of food that coated him) glanced about the kitchen and said, shaking his head, "Oh, boy…looks like we have a bit of tidying up to do."

Terence cracked up. "Look at yourself, Tumnus!" he grinned heartily. "You look positively dreadful!"

"Well, you're not really much of an impressive sight yourself," Tumnus countered. His face was already beginning to feel stiff as the food slowly dried out.

"Well, who is to blame for all this?" said Terence, looking the faun shrewdly in the eye.

"Hey," said Tumnus, raising his white, sticky hands in defense, "you're the one who got into it, Terence. Had you not dumped the batter and the flour on me in the first place, we would never have gotten as far as we have."

"Guilty as charged," Terence conceded, but Tumnus knew the unicorn really wasn't sorry, and of course he himself really wasn't angry.

All things considered, it was actually rather fun.

"Before we straighten up the kitchen, though," Terence continued, "don't you think we ought to straighten ourselves up a bit first? It'll be a lot easier to get the kitchen back in order if we ourselves were a little more orderly."

"Now that's an idea I agree with wholeheartedly," Tumnus replied. Looking down at himself, he added wryly, "And the only place to go to clean up _this_ mess is the lake. What do you say we head over there and go for, how do you say, a little dip?"

"Sounds great!" said Terence.

The two friends slowly made their way out of the kitchen and across Tumnus's living room, taking care to not get Tumnus's prized rug dirty, and they cautiously slipped out the front door, one after the other.

Once outside, Terence promptly bolted into a run, calling to Tumnus over his shoulder, "Last one there is a rotten egg!"


	6. Of Scarves and Friends

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story six! Another relatively silly story, but with a very important moral. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY SIX:  
OF SCARVES AND FRIENDS**

"Terence, give that back!" Tumnus called out as he pelted after the unicorn, while the unicorn gleefully sprinted along with the faun's prized, ruby-red scarf in his teeth.

Terence merely grinned at Tumnus over his shoulder and kept going, the scarf streaming like a banner behind him.

Tumnus was not amused. "Terence, get back here!" he commanded sharply. "Terence!"

But the unicorn continued to lope gracefully through the woods, and Tumnus had no other choice but to continue to pursue him.

This was one of those times when Tumnus found it utterly maddening that he only had two legs, while Terence had the advantage of four; not to mention the fact that unicorns were much swifter and speedier than fauns by mere nature. Even when Terence was only cantering, Tumnus still had trouble keeping up with him.

And the rugged landscape was of no help to the faun. He had to watch his hooves while he ran, and make sure that he didn't stumble or trip over anything in his haste. Terence, being a unicorn, rarely stumbled at all. He could easily make his way through the forest without tripping or bumping into anything, even if he were blindfolded.

"I mean it, Terence!" Tumnus hollered after the white, horned beast. "You better give that scarf back right now, or so help me, there will be the devil to pay!"

Terence said nothing, what with having the scarf between his teeth and all, but he kept going. Tumnus could swear he heard an amused nicker coming from the unicorn, and he gritted his teeth and forced himself to run faster. _Oooh, _he thought furiously to himself, _when I get my hands on that impish, ill-disciplined, idiotic little…_

As they neared a water hole, Tumnus inadvertently caught his left hoof in a gnarled root, and the young faun staggered clumsily and ended up falling face forward into the water. He cried out as he felt himself lose his balance altogether, and then he hit the water with a great splash.

Luckily, the water was only about three or four inches deep.

Tumnus remained where he had fallen for a short time, and slowly he raised himself onto his hands and knees, sputtering, water dripping steadily from his face and beard and curly locks.

Terence promptly slid to a halt when he heard his two-legged companion yell out, and when he saw that Tumnus had fallen, he forthwith turned around and ambled back to Tumnus as the wet, exasperated faun crawled out of the water hole and sat on the grass, favoring his left leg, which he could have very easily broken when he tripped and fell.

Fortunately, his leg didn't seem to be really broken, but it still hurt considerably when Tumnus tried to move it.

Terence tentatively stepped closer to Tumnus, dragging the scarf along with him. Tumnus glared at him, and shot forth a hand and jerked the scarf out of the unicorn's mouth, none too gently. "Give me that!" he snapped.

"Tumnus, are you okay?" Terence asked. His concern was genuine.

"Oh, yeah, sure, I'm just peachy," the faun fumed, "no thanks to you! I could have become crippled because of you, and then what would I have done?"

Terence's ears and tail drooped at the faun's sharp accusation. "Gee, Tumnus, I'm sorry," he said meekly. "I was only trying to have a little fun with you."

"Oh, sure," Tumnus said again, his voice dripping bitter sarcasm. "And while we're at it, why don't we break _both_ my legs and consider that 'fun', or break my arm or my back or possibly my neck, and laugh about that?"

"I'm sorry," Terence repeated a second time. He gazed earnestly into the faun's face, hoping that Tumnus would understand just how sorry he really was.

"Just go away," Tumnus ordered. "I have had more than enough of you and your stupid antics. Go on, Terence, leave me alone! And never, _never_ touch my scarf, _ever_ again! Do you hear me? Now, get out of here!"

Terence looked at his friend very sadly for a moment, and then the young white stallion docilely lowered his head, turned his back upon the faun, and slowly and silently began to trot away with his long tail hanging loosely between his hind legs.

Yet the unicorn's wounded expression stayed with Tumnus, and soon Tumnus's anger and frustration was replaced with genuine shame and deep, painful regret.

What had he done?

Did he really have to lash out at Terence like that? Did he really have to get that angry over the unicorn's carefree and casual, but hardly criminal, behavior?

Tumnus looked down at the red scarf he held within his hands. As much as he prized his scarf, was it really, truly worth losing a friend because of it?

A scarf was a scarf. It was not made of flesh and bone and blood. It had no feelings, no emotions. A scarf could not make Tumnus laugh with an amusing joke, or speak a word of kindness to him when he was feeling down. A scarf was not Terence—one of the few true friends Tumnus knew or had ever known in his life.

Before Terence had completely gone from sight, Tumnus called after him, "Terence, wait."

The unicorn stopped and glumly looked back, and Tumnus got to his hooves and hobbled over to him, wincing just a little with the pain that coursed through his injured leg. Terence stood still and waited for him, and when Tumnus reached him, he placed his free hand apologetically on the unicorn's satiny neck.

"I'm sorry," the faun said, without hesitation. "I'm sorry I yelled at you like that. I should never have gotten so riled up. Maybe if I hadn't, I would not have tripped and hurt myself in the first place. And you are way more important to me than any old scarf. Our friendship means more to me than anything in the world. I'm sorry, Terence. Will you forgive me?"

Terence, thankfully, was not one to harbor a grudge, and he smiled at Tumnus and gently nuzzled the faun's damp curls, his breath warm and reassuring. Though no words were spoken outright, Tumnus knew the unicorn's answer to his petition was yes, and he smiled also. He set his scarf aside, then reached up and encircled the unicorn's neck with his arms.

After a time, Terence took a playful nibble at Tumnus's curls.

"Hey, cut that out!" Tumnus said, but he was smiling and laughing this time.

He pulled away, and Terence now swept his tongue over Tumnus's face like an eager puppy.

"Hey, now, stop that!" the faun cried, still laughing.

Terence then moved his snout all over Tumnus's face and neck, blowing warm breath continuously against him, his whiskers tickling the faun's bare skin unmercifully. Tumnus laughed harder and pushed the unicorn's nose away. "For heaven's sake, Terence, quit trying to butter me up!" he chortled.

At last Terence stopped altogether, and simply stood quietly before his companion.

"Oh, Terence," said Tumnus, with both exasperation and affection displayed prominently in his tone and facial expression, "I just can never stay angry with you, can I?" He shook his head. "You little imp! What am I going to do with you?"

Terence grinned. "I think the more appropriate question is, what would you do without me?"


	7. Scratch My Back

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story seven. Extremely short story (probably my shortest one yet!), but extremely cute, and very funny! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY SEVEN:  
SCRATCH MY BACK**

"Come on, Terence, I've been scratching your back for ages," Tumnus complained.

"Hold on a second, Tumnus, I've still got a slight itch on my left shoulder," replied the unicorn, who was sprawled out idly on the soft summer grass next to the faun. "No, no, not there, just a little lower—oh, yeah, there! Right there! That's it! Oh, that feels marvelous!"

Tumnus sighed as he raked his fingernails back and forth over Terence's flesh.

Of all the things to be doing at this time of day, this time of the year—and here he was, sitting in the middle of a grassy meadow with Terence, helping Terence to satisfy a few minor itches, while the lazy unicorn simply lay there without a care in the world.

When Tumnus finally withdrew his hand altogether, he said to the unicorn, none too pleasantly, "There, now, is that enough back-scratching for you?"

"Yeah," Terence acceded, "that ought to do it for one day."

"Thank Aslan," Tumnus whispered fervently to the heavens.

Terence then rolled himself over onto his back, exposing his snow-white belly, and asked good-naturedly, "Now, would you be so kind as to scratch my belly?"

"What?!?!" the faun exclaimed. "Oh, no, Terence! You can't be serious!"

"Come on, Tumnus, old buddy," urged Terence, "pretty please?" He offered the faun his very best puppy-dog look.

Tumnus groaned. That look always got to him—every single time.

"Oh, all right," he grumbled, and he reluctantly obliged.

Terence smiled and closed his eyes. "Oooh, yeah," he said delightedly, relishing the feel of Tumnus's nails on his prickly skin, "life is good!"

_Well, at least for one of us, anyway,_ Tumnus thought sourly.


	8. Fishing

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story eight. Another relatively short, and relatively silly story, but this ought to give you something to laugh about! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY EIGHT:  
FISHING**

Tumnus sighed as he sat on the grassy bank alongside his friend Terence. "Some fishing trip this is turning out to be," he grumbled to the unicorn, running his free hand through his golden-brown curls in frustration. "Not even a kipper."

It was a warm, sunny day in midsummer, and Tumnus the faun was out fishing by a river not too far away from the cave where he lived, accompanied by his friend Terence—a white unicorn stallion with hooves and a horn as bright as gold, and a tail and mane as luminous as the moon on a clear, cloudless night.

They'd been perched on the bank for over an hour, and so far, Tumnus hadn't had any luck.

Maybe this day just wasn't a good day for fishing, the faun figured.

"Perhaps we should call it quits here, and find something else to do today," he said, as he trifled halfheartedly with his wooden pole.

"Aw, come on, Tumnus, you're not giving up that easily, are you?" Terence chided him gently. "We came here to get ourselves a fish, and a fish is exactly what we're going to get."

Tumnus peered up at his companion. "Well, then, I suppose _you _have a better solution?"

The unicorn smiled haughtily at him. "As a matter of fact, I do." Terence sprang to his hooves and agilely leaped down the bank as he went on, "Just as there is more than one way to skin a cat, so too is there more than one method for catching a fish."

He crouched down a bit at the outermost edge of the bank and launched himself adroitly into the air, landing perfectly on a rock that jutted out of the water, about a yard or so away from Tumnus.

The unicorn stood solidly on all fours and glanced over his shoulder at the faun, and continued smugly, "You can keep those crummy little poles, with the strings and the hooks and all. Me, personally—I usually go for a different tactic." He gave a none-too-subtle glance upward, indicating the long, sharp horn that protruded from his forehead.

Tumnus merely closed his eyes and brought his other hand up to his face, shaking his head from side to side. He was very fond of Terence, really, but sometimes the unicorn could be _such _a bighead.

"You see, it's really all a matter of patience, location, and timing," Terence explained. "You've got to wait and pinpoint your opponent, and know exactly where to attack, and when to attack. You plan your strategy, take your position, and at precisely the right moment, you lay into your opponent, and, if all goes according to plan—bingo!"

Tumnus dragged his hand slowly down his face, flattening his nose and tugging on his curly goatee, and finally opened his eyes again. Imagine, he thought, a unicorn teaching a faun how to catch a fish.

What was next? Flying pigs?

Terence stared intently into the clear blue water for a time, and then at last he proclaimed, "A-ha—here comes a whopper!" He cast a brief, sideways glance at Tumnus as he continued slyly, "Now, watch the master, and learn."

Tumnus shook his head again, and smiled somewhat lopsidedly as he regarded his four-legged comrade. "This ought to be good," the young faun muttered aloud to himself.

Terence waited for a bit, and when he felt the time was just right, he lunged out at the fish with full force. All of a sudden his hooves completely slipped out from beneath him—and the unicorn fell entirely into the river, landing with a terrific splash that sent water slopping everywhere.

Tumnus immediately raised an arm to shield his face as some of the water sprayed over him.

When he looked up again a moment later, Terence was nowhere in sight, though Tumnus could clearly see giant bubbles and ripples emanating from the spot where the unicorn had fallen into the water.

"Terence?" Tumnus called anxiously to his friend. "Terence!"

Before he had a chance to panic, however, the unicorn burst through the surface, soaking wet and gasping for air. A considerable-sized fish was skewered onto the end of Terence's horn, still wriggling a little, its scales glittering and flashing like diamonds in the afternoon sunlight.

At a loss for words, Tumnus could only stay where he was on the bank, and stare in openmouthed astonishment.

"Got him!" Terence proclaimed triumphantly to the faun, once he had recovered his breath and could speak properly again.

Tumnus now had to laugh outright.

Well, that certainly was one way to catch a fish!


	9. Swimming With the Fishes

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story nine. This is one of my personal favorites! I got an especial kick out of writing this. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY NINE:  
SWIMMING WITH THE FISHES**

It was a fiercely hot, sweltering day. Tumnus and Terence were sprawled out together on the ground beneath a towering tree, listening to the monotonous drone of the insects and the thin rustle of the leaves in the slow-moving air. Tumnus, who was nestled comfortably against Terence's silken flank, was just on the verge of drifting off into a nap when the young unicorn spoke to him: "You know, Tumnus, I could really use a good swim right about now. What do you say we head for the lake and go for a little dip?"

This jolted the young faun awake at once. "What?" he gasped, bolting to an upright position.

"Sure, why not?" said Terence, as he ascended to all fours and started walking. "The lake's just over there, and the water should cool us down in no time. Come on, Tumnus! Last one in the water is a yellow-bellied guppy!"

He then sprinted toward the lake, which was indeed just a few yards away from their resting spot, but Tumnus stayed put. When Terence realized that the faun wasn't following him, he promptly slid to a halt and looked back.

"What are you waiting for, Tumnus?" he questioned. "Let's go!"

Tumnus hesitated. "Uh, maybe you should just go on ahead without me, Terence," he said at length, as he climbed to his own hooves. "I'm perfectly content right here."

"Aw, come on!" Terence insisted.

Tumnus shook his head adamantly. "No, really, Terence, I'd better not."

"What's the matter?" asked the unicorn. "You're not scared of the water, are you?"

He could tell from the look that crossed Tumnus's face that he had just scored with that one.

"Oh, Tumnus," he said, shaking his head in disbelief as he trotted back to his companion and stood before him, "surely you're not serious!"

But Tumnus was dead serious. "It's true," he confessed, lowering his eyes to his hooves. "I have always been terrified of water, ever since I was very young."

"Why?" Terence asked bewilderedly. "Just what is it about the water that gets to you?"

Tumnus looked up at Terence once more, his eyes wide and shining with fear. "Though water may appear safe from a distance," the faun said, his tone low and urgent, "it's really a death trap in disguise. It's like a ravenous monster, anxious to take you down and devour you. Once you're in it, you're lucky to get out alive."

Terence rolled his eyes. "Oh, puh-_lease_…that is the silliest thing I have ever heard of, and you're a silly old faun. Now, come on!" The unicorn turned and headed once more for the lake, whisking his long tail as he did, so that it brushed lightly against Tumnus's face.

"I may be a silly old faun," said Tumnus defensively as he trailed along in the unicorn's wake, "but at least I'm alive, and not swimming with the fishes, if you know what I mean."

Terence shook his head, his mane flowing over his neck and shoulders like molten moonlight. _What a scaredy-faun_, he thought to himself. _Something will have to be done about this._

As they neared the lake, Terence slowed his pace and allowed Tumnus to go ahead of him.

Tumnus tentatively approached the cool blue water, then stopped altogether at the edge of the bank, gazing down apprehensively at the death pit that lay below his hooves. He could see weeds tranquilly swaying to and fro below the surface, and he could also see a few fish flitting about here and there. The water looked harmless enough, but Tumnus knew that a lot of things that were attractive to the eye resulted in the end of one's earthly existence.

Tumnus felt his heart begin to beat faster, and he swallowed hard.

While he had his back turned, Terence silently moved closer to the faun and bumped him gently with his snout, causing the faun to stumble forward. "Whoa!" Tumnus cried out as he felt himself lose his balance, and then he toppled headfirst into the water and disappeared.

After remaining underwater for a few brief moments, Tumnus broke through the surface, drenched to the skin and gasping noisily for breath, and then he began making a show of splashing around and fighting to keep his head above water.

"Terence!" he wailed desperately to the unicorn. "Save me!"

Terence stayed right where he was, looking down at the struggling faun with amusement.

"Tumnus," he said simply, "stand up."

When Tumnus realized he could touch the bottom with his hooves, he quit floundering about and now stood quite still in the water, the water covering him only up to his neck.

"There, you see?" Terence proclaimed. "You're in the water, and you're still alive."

Tumnus blushed, and he gave out a nervous chuckle. "Er, right," he said sheepishly.

Terence backed a few steps, then all at once came rushing forward and launched himself high into the air, performing a magnificent leap right over Tumnus's head. Tumnus screamed out loud, but luckily Terence passed over him completely before he landed in the water. Water splashed everywhere, and Tumnus promptly shielded his face with his forearms.

When he looked up again a minute later, he saw Terence standing right in front of him, the water reaching up to the unicorn's withers, his silvery mane plastered down against his head and neck. Terence sucked in a mouthful of water and playfully squirted it in Tumnus's face, making the faun sputter.

"You see, Tumnus?" said Terence again. "The water's not going to hurt you."

"Well, in the shallow end, I suppose it's all right," Tumnus admitted.

Provided that he could touch the bottom and still keep his head above the surface at the same time, it really wasn't so awful. And the water did feel pleasantly cool to his skin. As long as he didn't have to go _all _the way under, he would be okay.

The faun and the unicorn spent the next two minutes or so lazing around in the shallow end, and Tumnus was just getting accustomed to the water and actually beginning to enjoy himself when Terence said, "Now that that's settled, what do you say we strike out a little farther?"

"_What?!?!?!?_" exclaimed Tumnus, horrorstruck. "Oh, Terence, no!" He shook his head vehemently and repeated, "No, no, no, no, no, no, and _no!_ No way!"

"Aw, come on, Tumnus," Terence cajoled.

"No, never in a million years!" said the adamant faun. "There is no way you're hauling me all the way out there, just to have me sink like a rock and drown!"

"You won't drown, Tumnus," Terence declared firmly.

"I most certainly will," Tumnus interjected. "I'm way too young to have my life end at the bottom of a lake. There are so many things that I haven't yet gotten to do."

"Come on, Tumnus," his friend repeated, "you can't go around living your whole life in constant fear. If you're going to conquer your fear, you must learn to face it dead-on."

Tumnus's face turned pale, and he gulped.

_This unicorn is trying to kill me!_ he thought to himself.

Terence made the faun hold onto his neck, and then he promptly propelled the two of them further out into the lake. In no time, Tumnus felt the bottom disappear beneath his hooves altogether, and he had no other choice but to hang on. The weeds soon disappeared from sight, and the water grew progressively darker as it got deeper.

"Oh, I don't like this," Tumnus moaned, clinging to Terence's neck for dear life, "I really don't like this—"

"Relax, Tumnus," Terence assured him as they glided smoothly through the water.

But Tumnus couldn't relax. The further they went, the more panicky the faun got. Tumnus shut his eyes and tightened his grip on the unicorn's neck, unable to hold back a little whimper.

Terence continued to stroke and kick, until finally he stopped. He continued to paddle with his hooves every now and again, keeping himself and his companion afloat. "This should be far enough," he proclaimed, and Tumnus looked back and saw that they were at least a hundred feet away from the shoreline.

Looking down, it was impossible to tell exactly how deep the water went. Tumnus's heart beat a mile a second against his ribcage, and he felt nauseous. "Terence, please," he said fervently, "I'm begging you, take me back!"

"I'll take you back," Terence promised him, "once you and the water become better acquainted with one another."

"Terence, I can't do this!"

"How do you know you can't do it, unless you take a shot at it?" the unicorn countered. "Now, take some time to calm down and pull yourself together, and when you're ready, let go of me and start swimming. I think that once you get the hang of it, you'll find the experience quite enjoyable."

"Oh, yeah? What if I drown in two seconds?"

"Just do it. And if you really do start to drown, I'll rescue you."

"Do you swear?" said Tumnus, looking the unicorn very gravely in the eyes.

"Sure, cross my heart."

Tumnus hesitated for about a full minute before finally answering, "Well, okay."

Somehow, he found the courage to release his hold on the unicorn.

Immediately he sank completely below the water, and at first he panicked—but then he started moving his legs and arms around in a certain way and managed to propel himself back to the surface. He emerged with a loud, gasping breath, then glanced around and suddenly realized this wasn't as terrible as he had previously assumed.

He wasn't dead, and the water around him was perfectly friendly and tranquil; it was like swimming in one great big bathtub.

Soon, Tumnus felt brave enough to hold his breath and immerse his face entirely in the water. Below the surface, he could see that the lake really wasn't that deep, and it was filled with all sorts of interesting plants and fish. It was as if he were flying over an entirely new world.

As Tumnus launched himself through the water with his arms and hooves, he could feel his fear dissolving and his heart growing considerably lighter.

Terence was right—this wasn't a big deal.

In fact, once he got the hang of it, this actually turned out to be perfectly glorious!

Tumnus soon got so caught up in swimming and diving and exploring the amazing underwater sights that he completely forgot about being afraid, and he was no longer so anxious to get back to the shore.

Terence presently joined the faun in exploring the wonders of the aquatic world, and it was well over two hours before the two of them finally returned to the bank and hauled themselves out of the water, exhausted and soaked to the bone, yet high-spirited at the same time. They flopped down next to each other on the soft grass and lay side by side for a time, breathing in deeply, the water on their hair and bodies glistening in the sunlight.

"There, now," said Terence good-naturedly, "that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"That was splendid!" Tumnus answered radiantly. "We should do this again sometime!"

"See, what did I tell you? You had nothing to worry about!"

"I knew it would be all right the whole time, Terence," the faun proclaimed proudly. "Never doubted you for a second there."

"Oh, yeah, sure," said the unicorn casually, "sure…whatever you say, Tumnus."


	10. A Walk in the Woods

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story ten! This means I'm about 10% done with this challenge. _

_Ever wondered what it was like, when Terence and Tumnus met for the first time? What you're about to read explains just that. Now that I look at this, I think I ought to make their first meeting into a slightly longer story. But, in the meantime, I hope you enjoy what I've got for you now! _

_This is a lot like Tumnus's first encounter with Lucy in the original movie, only it's slightly different. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY TEN:  
A WALK IN THE WOODS**

Tumnus was walking quietly through the Western Woods, minding his own business, when suddenly he felt compelled to stop and listen. He didn't know why, but he had the nagging suspicion that someone was following him.

Someone…or something.

Figuring it was merely his nerves, the young faun tossed one end of his woolen red scarf jauntily over his shoulder and started walking again. He had barely taken five steps, however, when he heard a snap close by, and then the distinctive patter of hooves. Immediately Tumnus froze in his tracks, glancing around bewilderedly for the source of the noise—but he saw nothing, aside from trees and bushes.

Yet the hoofbeats continued, growing louder by the second. And then, from the furthermost corner of his eye, Tumnus could have sworn he saw a white flash moving through the woods.

Tumnus's heart started beating faster, and he tried to force down the lump of fear that hovered in his throat. Maybe, he thought, if he remained as silent as possible and didn't make any sudden movements, whatever was out there would go away and leave him in peace…

The hoofbeats drew nearer and nearer, until at last a mysterious white creature with four legs and a long, sharp horn as brilliant as the sun emerged into Tumnus's view. Despite his intention to keep still, Tumnus screamed out loud at the sight of the beast and jumped back, and the beast cried out and sprang back as well.

The two screamed together for a short time, and then, as if they were of one mind, they both fled and hid themselves from one another. Tumnus went and cowered in a thick patch of shrubbery, while at the same time the strange white beast leaped nimbly behind a tree.

Tumnus crouched as low in the bushes as he possibly could, listening and waiting apprehensively, but nothing happened. Save for the melodic trill of a solitary bird, the woods were utterly silent.

Tumnus waited a minute longer, and still nothing happened.

Was it safe, Tumnus wondered? Dare he go out to look to see if whatever was out there was still lurking around? He was afraid to risk it.

Somehow, though, the young faun found the courage to venture out from his hiding spot. When nothing came to attack him, and when he saw no trace of the creature that had frightened him, he relaxed his taut muscles and released his breath in a deep sigh of relief.

It was all right. He was safe.

Whatever that thing was, it was gone now—or so the faun thought.

A rustle sounded from behind just then, making Tumnus jump a mile.

He wanted to run away right then and there, and hide again, but this time he braced himself; telling himself that freaking out would do him no good, that it would be best to simply remain calm and keep a level head on his shoulders.

And then a wave of wonder and amazement flooded through Tumnus's heart as he turned himself around and saw, truly saw, the creature that had given him such a scare.

It looked like a horse…and yet it was not a horse. Not like one Tumnus had ever seen before, anyway.

It was rather on the lean side, but very finely built. The tail that grew nearly all the way to the ground, and the mane that fell well below the creature's neck, were both of the purest silver. The creature's brilliantly white coat rivaled even the brightest and the purest of snow Tumnus had seen in his lifetime. The beast had thick, feathery tufts of white hair on its ankles, and its hooves looked like they had been fashioned out of solid gold. Its eyes were as blue as the ocean itself—and as deep and mysterious besides. A long, somewhat scraggly white beard trailed from its lower jaw.

But it was the horn that spiraled from the middle of its forehead that really caught Tumnus's eye. Extending a full three feet, and tapering to a razor-sharp point at the end, it seemed to glow from within with a soft golden light.

Tumnus imagined a horn that big and sharp could pierce anything, and the faun felt his stomach churn unpleasantly at such a thought.

When the beast saw him, it appeared startled at first, but it made no movement to attack.

For a time, the two stood perfectly still and gazed at one another. Then Tumnus took a tentative step forward.

The horned creature did not move.

Tumnus drew in a long breath, and mustered enough nerve to take a second step.

The strange white beast slowly picked a forehoof off the ground and carefully placed it down again one second later, but stayed put. Either this creature was harmless in general nature, Tumnus figured, or perhaps it found him peculiar enough that it preferred to watch him rather than shish-kabob him.

Tumnus took a third step, then a fourth, and then a fifth, and still the beast did not budge. When the two were about a foot or so apart from each other, Tumnus finally stopped altogether, still unable to take his eyes off the beast.

One second passed in silence. Then two seconds. Then three, then four, then five…

Finally the beast moved its lips and spoke to Tumnus: "Well, are you just going to stand there and goggle at me all day, or do you actually have anything noteworthy to say?" The voice that emitted from its mouth sounded quite young; yet it had a strong, lively pitch to it.

Tumnus nearly jumped right out of his skin.

"You—you can talk?" he gasped.

"Oh, yes," the white beast answered nonchalantly, "quite well, actually."

Tumnus stared at the strange animal's mouth, astonished to see it move, and to hear just how easily the creature conversed with him, how well the creature understood him.

"Is something the matter with my speech, or did you naturally assume that I was a mute?"

Tumnus blinked and gave his head a little shake. "I—I'm sorry," he stammered.

The beast snorted and tossed its head skyward, sending its mane rippling over its shoulders like liquid silver.

"Forgive me if I sound a tad rude," said Tumnus, "but what exactly are you?"

"I? Why, I'm a unicorn."

"A unicorn, you say? Do they really exist?"

"Well, I'm standing right here in front of you, talking to you. Is that sufficient proof for you?"

Tumnus felt his face grow warm. "Forgive me," he said again, bowing his head meekly. "I just always assumed that unicorns only existed in…you know…fairy tales, and such."

The unicorn rolled its eyes. "Psh…it figures."

A long, awkward moment passed between the two of them.

"Well, what are _you_ supposed to be?" the unicorn asked at length. "Some kind of man-stag?"

"Actually," said Tumnus, "I'm what they call a faun."

"A faun, you say, eh?" A hint of amusement colored the unicorn's tone. "Huh. Now I've seen everything."

Tumnus gently pressed a fist against his sealed lips, and discreetly cleared his throat. "Well, then, unicorn—" he began diplomatically.

"Excuse me, but I do have a name, you know," the unicorn cut him off. "My name is Terence."

"Terence?" Tumnus repeated. "Really?"

"Of course. Unicorns are perfectly entitled to individual names, aren't they?"

"Yes, I suppose you're right. Okay, then, Terence. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tumnus."

"Tumnus," the unicorn named Terence repeated, rolling the name around thoughtfully on his tongue. "Bit of an unusual name, if you ask me. But if that's what they call you, then that's what I shall call you hereafter."

"Well, then, Terence," said Tumnus, "how would it be if you came and had tea with me?"

"I don't know," said Terence. "Wouldn't that seem rather unusual, a unicorn and a faun sharing tea together like civilized people?"

"No more unusual than a creature who is half man and half beast standing in the middle of a wood conversing with a unicorn who possesses the gift of human speech."

"True," Terence conceded.

"And," said Tumnus, "there will be a marvelous fire, with toast and tea and cakes, and while we're at it, we could—possibly, quite possibly—break into the sardines."

"Well," said Terence, "I suppose I could stick around for a little bit." He added with a grin, "That is, if you have sardines."

Tumnus grinned back. "By the bucket load."


	11. In the Living Flesh

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Presenting story eleven! This is how Tumnus first meets up with Terence as a human being. I originally wrote this with the intention of it being a silly story, but then I got all sentimental on myself; and ultimately I figured, what the hey? _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY 11:  
IN THE LIVING FLESH**

Tumnus the faun was sitting alone in his cave, quietly poring over a book, yet for some reason he couldn't concentrate well on it. Though a splendid fire was crackling away inside his fireplace, sending out a wave of pleasant warmth, the faun felt strangely cold and empty inside. He realized he was missing his friend Terence, the unicorn.

It had been quite some time since Tumnus had last seen his old pal, and now the faun yearned deeply for Terence's company. Terence was such a plucky little gelding—annoying at times, yet genuinely friendly, and kind, and courageous, and funny, with a true heart. Though Tumnus had often been irked by the unicorn and his absurd antics, he always did care about him, and he always found Terence's unreserved affection for him touching.

Whatever happened to Terence, Tumnus had never found out. He just hoped and prayed the unicorn was all right, wherever he was right now.

Tumnus silently turned a page, wondering to himself what his best mate was up to these days, and he also wondered if Terence missed him as much as he missed Terence.

A loud knock on the door roused Tumnus from his reverie. Curious as who his visitor could possibly be, and cheered by the thought that someone would come to see him, even if only for a minute, Tumnus set his book aside, rose to his hooves, and made a beeline to the door. When he unlocked the door and dragged it aside, he saw that his visitor was a human man.

Though the human appeared quite young (likely no more than eighteen to twenty years old, in Tumnus's eyes), his hair and the thick goatee that adorned his chin gleamed silver-white, like the moon at night. He wore a deep black traveling cloak over a blue frock trimmed with gold, and black hosiery covered his legs, which were long and well-built, and on his feet, he sported a fine pair of brown ankle boots. He stood very tall and straight, holding himself with elegance and dignity, and for a human, he was astonishingly, uncommonly handsome. His outward comeliness would have very quite easily enthralled the heart of any woman.

The man appeared remarkably pleased to see Tumnus. "Hello, Tumnus," he greeted the faun warmly. "I was hoping I would find you here. Is it all right if I come in?"

Tumnus was surprised that this odd human knew his name, and there was something peculiarly familiar about his tone of voice. The faun did not understand how this stranger knew him, but he allowed him entrance into his cave, granting him shelter from the cold outside.

The man gratefully stepped into the cozy, homely cave, and Tumnus closed the door firmly once he was inside. The man removed his black cloak from his shoulders and hung it discreetly by the door. And then he wandered about the main room for a time, looking all around, his eyes absorbing everything like a sponge absorbing water.

"I don't mean to be rude," said Tumnus, eyeing his guest warily, "but who are you, exactly? What are you doing here? What do you want with me? And how do you know my name? Have we met before?"

The white-haired man stared at the faun, looking bewildered at first, and then a look of gentle concern spread across his attractive, youthful face. "Tumnus, don't you remember me?" he asked mildly. "It's me, your old friend Terence."

Tumnus froze like a statue upon hearing this, his eyes widening to at least twice their normal size. Did his ears deceive him? This man standing before him—it wasn't possible, was it?

Tumnus gazed into the strange man's intensely blue eyes for a time, and suddenly he recognized them. "Terence?" he gasped. His voice was scarcely louder than a whisper, so great was his astonishment. "Is it really you? Really and truly you?"

The young man now smiled at him as he answered benevolently, "In the flesh."

For at least a full minute or so, Tumnus was unable to move or speak. It was as if he had been struck dumb. When at long last he was convinced it was truly his old comrade, his heart melted into a puddle on the floor. Tears welled in his eyes as he rushed forward and threw himself at Terence, engulfing the man in a fierce hug. He buried his face in the young human's neck, weeping shamelessly, his tears wetting Terence's bare skin.

Terence readily returned the faun's impassioned hug, tears blurring his vision as well.

The two friends stood close and clung to one another for what seemed like ages, unable and unwilling to let each other go. Terence patted Tumnus amiably on the bare back with one hand and ran his free hand affectionately through the faun's gold-brown curls. Tumnus merely tightened his grip on Terence and sobbed harder.

When at long last the crying subsided and the two young men drew apart, still resting their hands upon one another, barely able to see through the flood of tears, Terence said thickly, "Oh, Tumnus, my dear Tumnus—it's so good to see you! I have missed you so much."

"I can't believe it, Terence," Tumnus said in a choked voice. He laid a hand against Terence's wet cheek, feeling his old friend's modified features for himself. "Look at how you've changed! You're so completely different, I hardly recognize you. What on earth happened to you?"

"It's a long, long story," said Terence, managing a tearful smile.

Tumnus smiled as well. "Would you mind telling it to me, over a cup of tea? I've brewed a fresh pot just now. And I've also got toast and those special little cakes you have always liked to go with it as well."

"I would love to. In fact, I'd be most honored." Terence added shrewdly, "And there will be sardines as well, I presume?"

"All the sardines you can eat," Tumnus nodded, and they both laughed. They laughed so hard that fresh tears coursed down their faces, mingling with the old ones.

Eventually Tumnus took out his old, cherished handkerchief and held it up for Terence to see, asking with a watery chuckle, "Which one of us needs this the most?"

This made Terence laugh even harder, and Tumnus joined in. Presently Terence took the handkerchief first and dutifully dabbed at his face with one corner, and then he returned the cloth to Tumnus and Tumnus used a fresh corner to dry his own tears.

When they had finally made themselves a little more presentable and had managed to regain at least part of their composures, Tumnus made Terence sit down in the special armchair next to the fireplace that he typically reserved for special guests, and he himself disappeared into the kitchen and returned about five minutes later with a silver tea tray.

He set the tray down carefully on the little round table, and then he took a seat himself by the fire. "I'm so glad you're here," the faun said as he passed a cup in Terence's direction, and graciously added some milk and sugar to his friend's tea. "I have truly missed you."

Terence nodded. "It certainly is wonderful to be back."

"It certainly is wonderful to _have_ you back," Tumnus assured his friend, "even like this."


	12. On the Ball

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Thought I'd forgotten all about this, did you? I'll admit I've been pretty lazy lately (procrastination is one of my most grievous flaws), but I haven't given up on this project altogether. Yes, I'm still striving for 100 stories. Writing a solid hundred stories is definitely a challenge, hence the title. Anyway, here's another little piece, for your enjoyment. I look forward to your feedback, as always! _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY 12:  
ON THE BALL**

"So, explain to us exactly how the whole game of 'cricket' works, Lucy," said Tumnus.

"It's a bat and ball sport, Mr. Tumnus," answered Lucy Pevensie, the young queen of Narnia, and one of Tumnus's good friends. "It is a little bit like baseball, only not quite—"

"Baseball?" Terence repeated incredulously. "What's that?"

Lucy sighed, and shook her head. She still forgot every now and again that she and her friends came from completely different worlds.

It was a clear, cloudless, sunny afternoon, and young Queen Lucy, along with her friends Tumnus the faun and Terence the young, silver-haired human (well, technically, Terence was a unicorn, but he had been magically transformed into a human being), along with several other Narnians, were engaged in a little round of cricket on the grounds of Castle Cair Paravel.

And Lucy was finding it rather difficult to explain the rules for cricket in a way her mystical friends could understand.

"Basically, you have two teams," she said, after drawing in a long breath, "with eleven members on each side. A general cricket match is played on a grassy field, with a flat strip of ground in the middle, called a 'cricket pitch'. A wooden wicket is placed at each end of the pitch." She gestured toward the wickets, which had already been set in place.

The young girl now held up a small, hard ball about the size of a human fist and continued, "The main bowler throws this cricket ball from one wicket to the other. The ball usually bounces once before reaching the batsman, someone from the opposite team."

She brandished a wooden bat as she went on, "The batsman must hit the ball with a bat like this, in defense of the other wicket. In the meantime, the other members of the bowler's team stand around the field in different positions. These members must work to retrieve the ball in an effort to stop the batsman from scoring runs, and try to get him or her out if possible. If the person at bat does not get 'out', that person may run between the two wickets, exchanging ends with a second batsman, known as the 'non-striker'. This second batsman waits near the bowler's wicket. Every completed exchange of ends scores one run. Runs can also be scored if the person at bat hits the ball clear to the end of the playing area. In the very end, the team that has the most runs wins the match."

Her friends still looked quizzical, especially Tumnus and Terence, and Lucy sighed again and decided it would probably be better for her friends to learn from action rather than words alone.

"Let's demonstrate," she said. "Mr. Tumnus, you take this, and go stand over there." She handed the faun the wooden bat and directed him to where he ought to stand. "And Mr. Terence, you take this." She now handed the white-haired human the cricket ball. "Now," she said, when the two youths were in their correct positions, "throw Mr. Tumnus the ball, Mr. Terence. Throw it as hard as you possibly can."

So Terence wound up and hurled the ball in Tumnus's direction with all his might.

Immediately Tumnus panicked, and he promptly dodged the ball as it came to him, and the other Narnians behind him had to scatter to avoid getting hurt, and the ball ended up disappearing into a clump of shrubbery.

Lucy merely slapped a hand to her forehead. "You're supposed to hit the ball with the bat, Mr. Tumnus," she told the faun. Her tone was blunt, but not unkind.

"Sorry," said the chagrined faun, his face flushing scarlet. "Let me try again."

So the ball was retrieved from the bushes, and given to Terence again.

Terence once more wound up and lobbed the ball in Tumnus's direction. This time Tumnus stood his ground, and he swung with all his might as the ball neared him, but he missed.

"It's all right," Lucy assured her stag-legged friend, when he looked disappointedly at her, "just try it once more, Mr. Tumnus. You'll get it."

Again, the ball was sent back to Terence. Terence and Tumnus simultaneously drew in a long, deep breath, and Terence gathered his strength and hurled the ball a third time, just as hard as he could possibly throw. Tumnus swung the bat.

_CRACK! _

The bat at last collided with the ball, and the ball went flying in the opposite direction.

Tumnus and Lucy and everyone else cheered—until they saw the ball strike Terence squarely in the head. The incredible force of the blow knocked Terence out cold, and he crumpled to the ground, landing flat on his face, and lay perfectly still.

The smiles on everyone's faces vanished in an instant, and they all frantically rushed to Terence's unmoving, spread-eagled form on the grass. Lucy reached him first, and she knelt down and gently turned Terence over onto his back. Terence's eyes were closed, and there was a rather nasty-looking bump on the side of his head where the ball had struck him.

Tumnus soon reached them, and he threw himself to his own knees, fearfully shoved Lucy aside, and tried to rouse his friend. "Terence!" he shouted, grabbing the young human fiercely by the shoulders. "Terence, are you okay?"

Terence neither moved nor spoke. He simply lay there, limp and unresponsive, dead to the world around him. His head lolled hopelessly from his neck as Tumnus lifted him off the ground.

"Terence!" Tumnus yelled to him again, his tone and facial expression turning desperate. "Are you all right? Say something! Speak to me, please!"

Presently, a hushed moan sounded from Terence's lips, and his eyelids gradually fluttered open. Tumnus's heart leaped like a fish, and a look of hope flitted across Lucy's face. "Mr. Terence?" she said expectantly.

"Terence?" the young man echoed monotonously, a blank look in his eyes. "Who's Terence?"

Tumnus and Lucy and everyone else stared down at him, puzzled.

"You're Terence, Terence," said Beaver.

Terence blinked, and then his lips slowly upturned in a slight smile.

"Terence," he said again. "That is such a fine name. I wish it were mine." He gazed up at Tumnus and asked, "And who might you be, my fine chap?"

"This is Mr. Tumnus, Mr. Terence," said Lucy, before Tumnus could answer.

"Well, hello there, my dear child!" Terence greeted the girl fondly. "Aren't you the most adorable little thing! What is your name, honey?"

"I'm Lucy," she said, completely baffled by her friend's queer behavior.

"Don't you know us, Terence?" Tumnus questioned.

"I don't believe so, Timothy," Terence replied languorously. "Why, I don't believe I have ever seen anyone quite like you before in all my life."

Tumnus felt his heart twist within him. "Terence—it's me, old buddy," he protested.

A look of utter delight crossed Terence's face. "Oh, you consider me a friend? How splendid, Tobias! I am truly honored! One can never have too many friends in this world!"

Tumnus could not understand what was going on with his best mate. What was the matter with him? Could the blow he had just received have affected his brain, somehow?

"Uh-oh," said Beaver grimly, from beside Tumnus, "I think he may possibly have amnesia."

"Amnesia?" Tumnus repeated the word like it was foreign.

"It's when your memory becomes all messed up," Beaver explained. "You completely forget everything, including your own name. A severe head trauma is usually the main cause of it." His furry face darkened as he continued, "Sometimes amnesia can last the rest of one's life."

Upon hearing this, Tumnus's heart sank all the way down to the bottom of his hooves.

"Oh, no," the young faun groaned. "What have I done?" His eyes filled with tears as he turned his attention to Terence and said penitently, "I am so sorry, Terence. I am so very, truly, sincerely sorry. This is my fault. It's all my fault." His voice broke, and his tears spilled over and streamed down his face as he pleaded, "Oh, Terence—forgive me."

"Whatever for, my dear Tristan?" Terence asked confusedly. "Surely you couldn't have done anything so terrible!"

Tumnus groaned again and buried his face in his hands, shaking his head from side to side.

"What am I going to do?" he lamented to Lucy and all the others.

"Perhaps we could…" Beaver started, but then he faltered.

At once Tumnus looked up. "What?" he demanded. "Perhaps we could what?"

Beaver shook his head. "Never mind," he said softly. "It's probably a bad idea."

"What?" asked Lucy eagerly. "Let's hear it, Mr. Beaver!"

Beaver tugged pensively at his long whiskers. After a time, he gave in and revealed what he had in mind to Tumnus and Lucy and everyone else: "Well, if a severe blow to the head caused Terence to lose his memory, perhaps another severe blow will help restore it."

"What, bash Terence in the head again?" Tumnus asked bewilderedly.

Beaver shrugged. "I don't know if it will really do the trick, but we could at least give it a try."

"I suppose it _is_ worth a try," Lucy conceded. "Mr. Tumnus…"

"No," said Tumnus firmly, before she could even ask the question. "I won't do it! I won't hurt Terence a second time."

"But, Mr. Tumnus," she interjected, "we must do something. We can't let Mr. Terence stay like this forever."

"But I can't bring myself to injure my best mate again," said Tumnus, "let alone on purpose."

While he and Lucy argued with one another, with Beaver cutting in every now and again, Terence got up and wandered aimlessly away from them. Everyone else was too focused on Tumnus and Lucy to really notice the white-haired human leaving.

Terence sauntered over to the wicket where Tumnus had stood before, and picked up the bat that Tumnus had dropped when he'd fled to Terence after accidentally clonking him.

"Interesting instrument," Terence mused, as he toyed with the bat.

He fingered the smooth wood, and then, at length, he clutched the bat firmly in both fists and practiced swinging the thing around. He swung first to the left, and then to the right.

He swung upward, and then downward.

He swung slowly, and then he started swinging the bat faster and faster, until he was swinging it about like crazy.

In doing so, he inadvertently clubbed himself directly in the head.

There was a loud, sickening _crack _as the hard wood connected with Terence's skull, and the bat slipped out of his hands and hit the ground with a clatter.

Less than two seconds later, he himself hit the ground as well.

When Tumnus and Lucy and Beaver finally realized that Terence was no longer with them, and when they looked around for him and discovered him lying on the ground again with the bat alongside him, they anxiously ran to his side again, with the others hot at their heels.

This time Tumnus got to Terence first, and he knelt down once more on the grass and gathered the white-haired human's limp body into his arms, shouting vehemently in his friend's face, "Terence! Terence, are you all right?"

When Terence came to his senses and opened his eyes again, he moaned and laid a delicate hand against his head, murmuring, "Oh, dear heaven…have I got one heck of a headache." He gazed up at Tumnus, somewhat perplexed to find himself lying in the faun's arms, and said, "Hey, Tumnus, what just happened?"

Tumnus's eyes widened upon hearing his true name. "Did you just call me 'Tumnus'?"

"What else would I call you? You're the only Tumnus I know."

"Mr. Terence?" said Lucy cautiously, reaching out and touching her friend's broad shoulder gingerly. "Do you…do you feel any…different?"

"Aside from a splitting headache," he answered wryly, "I feel pretty much the same as I always do, Lucy."

Upon hearing him speak her name, Lucy's face brightened. "It worked!" she cried joyously to Tumnus and Beaver and the rest of the gang. "He's in his right mind, now!"

"Since when have I _not _been in my right mind?" Terence inquired.

"You don't remember what had happened just now, do you, Terence?" Beaver stated.

"I don't remember anything," Terence affirmed. "One minute, we're playing a game, and the next thing I know, I find myself lying here on the ground with all of you around me." He shook his head, then winced as pain surged through his skull.

"Are you all right?" Tumnus asked, gazing down at him solicitously.

"My head is killing me," Terence complained. "I feel as though I got hit by a sledgehammer."

"Perhaps you'd better come into the castle and lie down for a little bit, Mr. Terence," suggested Lucy.

Terence started to nod, but then thought better of it. "I would like that," he verified to the young queen of Narnia, "very much. And while we're at it, I could do with a cold compress." Grimacing at the fresh shot of pain in his head, he added, "Better make that two."


	13. Making a Match

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_How about that? Two updates in one day, in less than one hour! Actually, I'd already written these last two stories quite some time ago; I just never got around to sticking them up. Like I said, procrastination is a major weakness of mine. I'm sure I'm not the only person around here guilty of that. After this, I'll have to start thinking of new ideas for new stories. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY 13:  
MAKING A MATCH**

It was a night for celebrating at Castle Cair Paravel.

Mystical creatures of every kind were all amalgamated together in the grand ballroom, for a night of music and dancing, and overall socialization with one another.

Among the guests that evening was Tumnus the faun, and his best mate Terence, a dapper young unicorn turned human with luminous silver-white hair.

The music was lively and upbeat, and the two friends had a marvelous time dancing about with other fauns, as well as nymphs and sprites and satyrs and dryads, and the like. Tumnus moved his stag-like legs expertly about in a complex, fast-paced jig, his hooves clattering metrically on the hard marble floor. Terence was very spry and limber, and managed to execute a few impressive moves himself.

At length, the two friends held a little impromptu competition with one another, in which one attempted to outdo the other on the dance floor. It was all in good-natured fun, of course, and in the end, they both received a generous amount of praise from their onlookers.

When the festivities quieted down to some extent, Terence and Tumnus moved to one end of the room for a little break, and they both decided to grab a little refreshment while they were at it. So they each took a slice of tartlet from the food table and a goblet of fresh wine, and later they stood close together, their shoulders lightly touching, watching their fellow party members before them while they took a nibble here and a sip there.

"Ah, this is the life," Tumnus sighed contentedly.

"A perfect party in Cair Paravel on a perfect night, surrounded by friends and music and good food, with no troubles or worries," added Terence blithely.

He raised his goblet, and Tumnus did the same with his own, and the two young men gently clanked both cups together before simultaneously lifting the cups to their lips and throwing their heads back. The wine was sweet on their tongues as they drank the rest of it down.

When they were through, Terence grinned at Tumnus and said, "What more could you possibly ask for on a night like this?"

Tumnus said nothing, but his eye caught sight of Queen Lucy, one of the sovereign monarchs of Cair Paravel, and an old, dear friend of his.

Lucy had been just a child when Tumnus first met her, but now she had grown and developed into a lovely young woman. Her long reddish-brown hair reached nearly all the way to the small of her back, and she wore the most dazzling smile that lit up her eyes and enhanced her features. Looking into her face was like looking into the face of an angel, or at least that was what Tumnus thought.

Every time Tumnus looked at Lucy nowadays, even from a distance, his heart would flood over with love and fondness for her, but never without an accompanying stab of pain.

He had always cared for Lucy, but his feelings for her changed over the years. He loved her, really and truly loved her, and he wanted her more than any mortal man had ever wanted a woman. Yet he was afraid to tell her that, for fear of betraying her trust in him, and destroying his relationship with her. The faun doubted his heart could take it if that ever happened.

That night, Lucy was dressed in a long cerulean-blue gown that was rather simple, yet with a touch of elegance. When the musicians began playing another round of music, and the guests began dancing again, Lucy danced as enthusiastically as the rest of them, and Tumnus watched the young queen move breezily about, wishing he were with her and holding her in his arms, wishing that he could somehow find the courage to tell her outright exactly how he felt about her, how much she truly meant to him.

"Go on, Tumnus," Terence urged his friend, "ask Lucy for a dance! No need to be coy."

Though his heart was heavy with longing, Tumnus shook his head and started trotting off in another direction, murmuring, "I think I'll just go and help myself to another wine…"

"Oh, no you don't, pal!" Terence interjected, seizing the faun by his bare shoulders at once to stop him. He literally spun Tumnus around and gave him a push, sending Tumnus stumbling forward—right into Lucy's arms. The very next thing Tumnus knew, he was moving around the dance floor with the youngest monarch of Narnia.

Terence smiled as he watched Lucy and Tumnus dance together. He knew just how the faun felt about the human girl. Tumnus was never really good at hiding his emotions, or at least he could not conceal them from Terence. Terence knew his friend like he knew the back of his hand, and he was smart enough to recognize the signs of true love when he saw them.

Later that same evening, Tumnus wandered out onto a balcony to be alone for a while. He needed some time to think. The night was cool and soft, and the indigo-inked sky was spattered with innumerable stars. A full moon shone brightly, like a big, pearly, luminous orb. Behind Tumnus, the party was still in full swing, but out here, it was quiet and peaceful. The only sound out here was the tranquil lapping of the waves of the Eastern Ocean.

Tumnus leaned against the lip of the balcony with a deep, melancholic sigh. What was he to do, about Lucy and all? How could he tell her that he didn't just think of her as a common friend anymore? How could he actually say to her "_Lucy, I love you_"?

It would sound ludicrous.

And yet Tumnus didn't know if he could bear keeping something like this a secret for much longer. The faun was so caught up in his own distress that he didn't even notice Terence approaching him from behind. Terence reached out and tapped the faun on the bare shoulder with his forefinger, making Tumnus yell out in surprise and jump a mile.

"For pity's sake, Tumnus, it's only me," said Terence.

Tumnus sighed and laid a hand over his heart. "Good grief, Terence," he said faintly, "what are you trying to do? Give me a heart attack?"

Terence moved up to stand right next to the faun, resting his weight against the lip of the balcony just as Tumnus was doing. "What's up, mate?" the young white-haired human asked conversationally. "Why are you standing out here alone in the dark, while everyone else is celebrating inside?"

"I just needed some time to myself," said Tumnus quietly, lowering his gaze.

"I can tell something's bothering you, mate," Terence said. "What's on your mind?"

Tumnus sighed again, for the second time in the past five minutes. "Oh, nothing."

"Does it involve a certain someone?" Terence prodded.

Tumnus said nothing.

"A certain girl?" Terence continued.

Again, Tumnus said nothing.

"A young, beautiful, sweet, loving girl," Terence went on, "with long hair, a spunky personality, and a smile to melt the heart of a troll? A girl that you happen to have known for quite some time, now? You're thinking about Lucy, aren't you?"

Tumnus couldn't deny it. With his elbows resting atop the cool stone railing, he closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands, shaking his head slowly from side to side. When he finally looked up sometime later, he asked disconsolately, "What am I going to do, Terence?"

"What do you think you should do?" Terence countered. "Just tell Lucy how you feel. Just go right on ahead and spill the milk, and be done with it."

Tumnus shook his head. "If only it were that simple, Terence."

"It can be," Terence assured his friend. "It can be as easy or as hard as you make it. Take it from me, mate—it doesn't do you any good to simply keep your emotions all bottled up inside, and keep quiet about it. You need to learn to show your feelings, to let them all out."

Tumnus slowly ran a hand down his unshaven face. "I wish I could tell Lucy how I truly feel," he said softly, tugging on his curly beard. "But I'm afraid, Terence. I am afraid she'll reject me, that I'll lose her forever. If that happens, I don't know what I would do. It's a loss more than I can possibly bear, a price more than any faun can possibly pay."

From the furthermost corner of his eye, Terence spotted someone approaching them.

Turning his head a few slight degrees to one side, he noticed that it was none other than Lucy herself. The young queen stood in the arched doorway leading out onto the balcony, watching her two friends intently and eavesdropping on their conversation.

That gave Terence an idea. "Well, Tumnus," he said casually, in a voice loud and clear enough for Lucy to hear him, acting as though the girl weren't there at all, "imagine Lucy were here right now, this very moment. Tell me what you would tell her. Exactly what would you say, regarding your feelings for her? Just how would you put it? Go on, thrill me."

A faraway look appeared in Tumnus's warm blue eyes.

"I would tell my Lucy," he said, unaware that the girl was watching him and listening to every single word that passed from his lips, "that she is the sweetest, most precious thing that has ever happened to me in my whole, entire life. I would tell her that the stars in the heavens pale in comparison to the stars in her eyes. I would tell her that I need her the way a flower needs rain, the way a living creature needs sunshine and air. I would tell her that I love her with all my heart, all my soul, and all my strength, and that I'd gladly give my life for her."

Lucy became very still upon hearing these heartfelt words. After a time, a look of utter bliss spread across her face, illuminating her eyes like the stars that shone above them.

Terence smiled craftily to himself.

Tumnus's face fell, and he sighed deeply and dropped his head into his hands again.

He opened his mouth to say to Terence "_oh, but who am I fooling?_", but before a single word could escape his tongue, he heard Lucy's melodious voice speak from behind: "Do you really mean that, Tumnus?"

The faun gasped out loud and spun around, astonished to find her standing right there.

"Lucy!" he said in a hushed voice, his eyes as big and wide as the moon itself.

Terence had tricked him!

That little devil had deliberately made him reveal the deepest, most intimate secret he held within his heart, knowing full well that Lucy was there the whole time!

Tumnus gawked at Terence, his lips moving frantically but unable to speak a comprehensible word, and Terence just smiled and said serenely, "I think I'll let you two take it from here." He clasped Tumnus briefly on the shoulder, and then he went quietly on his way, winking furtively at Lucy as he passed by her on his way back into the ballroom.

Lucy then made a beeline into Tumnus's arms, nearly knocking the faun off balance. With her arms secured about his neck and her eyes focused entirely upon his face, she whispered rapturously, "Do tell me the part about the stars in my eyes again, my dear Tumnus."

Tumnus merely looked at her for a time, and then a smile slowly spread across his unshorn face, like melting butter on hot bread.

_I owe Terence for this, _he thought to himself, as he encircled his love's waist with his own arms and cradled her to his breast. _I owe him big time._


	14. An Apple a Day

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_Well! It's about time I updated this thing. After many, many months (almost a whole year, in fact!), I have __FINALLY__ come up with a fresh new story for this. I'm just as amazed as the rest of you are, if not more so. Like I said before, I can be as slow as maple syrup on a frozen day every so often, but I have yet to completely call it quits on a story. _

_Cookies for those who review this when they are through reading! And you know the rules: absolutely __NO__ flames. You're free to state your opinion, to tell me what can be improved on, but don't just go around trashing my stuff, saying "oh, this sucks" or "you're a terrible writer". It would only be a waste of your time and breath (or keyboard, in this case). _

_And remember, what goes around comes around. _

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever without expressed permission is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated. **_

**

* * *

STORY 14:  
AN APPLE A DAY**

It was the perfect day for a picnic. And, in fact, that was just what Tumnus and Lucy Pevensie were doing. The faun and the young queen of Narnia were out on one of the sweeping lawns of Castle Cair Paravel, seated comfortably on a large blanket in the shade of some towering apple trees, enjoying a very nourishing lunch.

Terence accompanied them that afternoon. While Tumnus and Lucy feasted on bread and cheese and freshly grown vegetables, along with some sardines that Tumnus had brought just for the occasion, the unicorn stood off to the side of them, nibbling delicately at the cool green grass. Occasionally Lucy slipped him a piece of bread or a bit of carrot, or something else good. And once, Terence slyly snatched up a crisp brown sardine just as Tumnus was about to eat it. "Hey!" was all Tumnus said to the unicorn, who merely grinned down at the faun in return, before tossing the sardine into the air and catching it neatly with his teeth again.

Being a unicorn, Terence very seldom ate meat, but every now and again he would eat a fish or two.

Tumnus scowled up at the stallion, and Terence now bent his head and nudged the faun playfully in the shoulder with his nose. Then it became considerably more difficult for Tumnus to not smile, and as Terence moved his snout all over the faun's shoulder and neck, past his ear and into his curly hair, snuffling enthusiastically the whole time, Tumnus couldn't help himself and laughed outright, while Lucy nearly choked on a hunk of bread as she laughed along. "Terence, get _off _me!" Tumnus cried, pushing the unicorn's nose away.

Terence obeyed and stood still, but his blue eyes continued to twinkle mischievously, and he made a hearty, rippling sound in his throat was unmistakably a unicorn's laugh. Tumnus shook his head at his mate, even as he continued to smile. Somehow, it was impossible for anyone to stay angry with Terence, at least for very long.

No matter the circumstance, the stallion always had a way of getting back into someone's good graces.

When Lucy finished her meal, she looked up at the ripe red apples that grew overhead, and decided those would make a lovely dessert. Unfortunately, the apples were too high. Even when Lucy stood up on her feet, rose onto her tiptoes, and stretched out her hand as far as it would go, they remained far beyond her reach.

"Mr. Tumnus," she said to the faun, "can you help me, please?"

So Tumnus crouched down on his haunches and allowed Lucy to climb onto his shoulders, and as he stood up on his hooves and struggled to balance her, she again reached out as far as she could, without her arm bursting from its socket. Yet even then, she still couldn't quite get to the apples. The outermost tips of her fingers barely brushed the skin of the fruit.

"Just a little higher, Mr. Tumnus!" the little girl grunted.

"I—can't!" answered Tumnus, who was already straining and sweating with the effort of holding Lucy up.

He had apparently forgotten how much Lucy had begun to grow, how much heavier the girl was getting. And he, himself, wasn't getting any younger.

Then, quite abruptly, Lucy's foot slipped on Tumnus's shoulder as they both unwittingly shifted their positions at the same time, and she ended up taking a tumble into the faun's arms. This knocked Tumnus entirely off balance, and he fell over backwards onto the ground, bringing Lucy right down with him. Their startled cries blended into one as they fell back together. Luckily, they landed on the blanket, and the grass beneath was very thick and soft anyway, so neither of the two got seriously hurt—although Tumnus did have the wind temporarily knocked out of him when Lucy landed directly on top of him.

Terence shut his eyes and shrank back when his friends crashed, and he very slowly opened his eyes again, one after the other, to look down at Tumnus and Lucy as they lay there.

"You two all right?" he asked.

"I'm all right," said Lucy. Then, realizing she was sprawled on top of Tumnus, the girl hastily rolled off him. "Oh!" she gasped. "Oh, Mr. Tumnus, I'm sorry—I'm very sorry!"

It took Tumnus a minute to answer, and when the faun had regained sufficient breath, he wheezed, "Don't even worry about it, Lucy."

"You okay, mate?" Terence questioned, lowering his head to the faun's level.

"I will be, in a moment," Tumnus rasped back.

"I'm sorry," Lucy apologized again. Looking up regretfully at the apples again, she said, "I guess the apples are just too high, for any of us to reach."

"Oh, really?" Terence spoke up suddenly, giving the girl a shrewd look. "Have you forgotten who is with you, Miss Lucy?"

"But _you _can't reach the apples, Terence," Lucy protested.

"You can't very well climb that tree," said Tumnus sardonically, as he rose to a sitting position. "You haven't even got hands, like the rest of us."

"This is true," Terence admitted. "But there is more than one way to skin a cat, you know, mate. Watch this." And before Tumnus or Lucy could say anything else, Terence crouched down slightly, then made a spectacular spring into the air. Using his long horn, he knocked a good number of apples from their branches, and the apples came raining down onto the grass, one after another. A few leaves came loose as well in the process. Lucy was surprised at first, but then her face broke out into a smile at Terence's clever trick.

Tumnus just rolled his eyes, and thought in his mind, _Show-off. _

When Terence stood on all fours again, he said proudly to his friends, "There you are, help yourselves!"

"Thanks, Terence!" said Lucy, and she eagerly began collecting the scattered fruit together.

"Yeah, thanks a heap, mate," Tumnus said. He added dryly, "Next time I need a helping hand, I'll get a unicorn to help me."

Terence bowed elaborately to the faun, and answered grandly, "I live but to serve, my good sir."


	15. Christmas Morning

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS 100 CHALLENGE**

_I meant to post this yesterday, but somehow the story didn't turn out nearly as easy to write as I'd thought. Oh, well, it's done now. Better late than never, like the saying goes. I hope you've all had a very merry Christmas! I know I have. My best wishes to you, for the upcoming year. To quote John Lennon: let's hope it's a good one, without any fear. _

_And, this marks a full year since I've posted this thing! _

_P.S. I almost forgot. Just so you are aware, part of this story is loosely based on the story "St. Valentine's Day", by viennacantabile. You should read it sometime; it's very sweet.  
_

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**

* * *

Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever, without expressed permission, is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated.**_

**

* * *

STORY 15:  
CHRISTMAS MORNING**

"Terence!" Lucy shouted, bursting into Terence's bedchamber in a great flurry of excitement. Jumping straight onto the bed itself, she squealed, "Terence, wake up! _Wake up!_"

Terence groaned and half-consciously pulled his pillow over his head.

"Geez, Lucy," his muffled voice sounded from under the pillow, "you give the worst wake-up calls of anybody I know."

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty," Tumnus announced, as he casually strolled into the room himself, his hands behind his back.

"Can't this wait till later?" Terence asked his friends witheringly, his head still buried from sight. "I'm wiped out."

"Serves you right for staying up all night last night, mate," Tumnus informed him.

Taking hold of the quilt with one hand and whisking it away, the faun continued, "Besides, Christmas is here. It's essentially the law to wake up at an early hour on this day."

As Terence was shirtless (the only article of clothing he wore in bed was a single pair of long, close-fitting, unadorned black pants), the young man immediately tensed up from the chill in the air. "Come on," Tumnus said, now snatching the pillow from his companion and flinging that aside as well. "Up and at 'em, Terence!"

Reluctantly, Terence shifted to a sitting position on the soft, deep feather mattress. Though the young man was quite slender, he had a handsome build that easily surpassed Tumnus's build, with a more finely sculpted chest, and more impressive muscles in his arms and shoulders. Terence bent forward and put his face in his hands, rubbing his eyes.

When he was facing Tumnus and Lucy properly a minute later, he asked them, "Who is this Christmas, anyway?"

Both Lucy and Tumnus stared at the young man as if he had gone completely nuts. "_What?_" Lucy gasped. "You mean to tell us you've never heard of _Christmas?_"

"Not really," Terence said, shaking his head in unashamed ignorance. "No."

Tumnus shook his own head, causing his honey-streaked curls to bounce jauntily about his ears and horns. "Why, Terence, I'm surprised at you!"

Terence only shrugged his shoulders halfheartedly, in response to this.

As he hadn't been human for too dreadfully long (in truth, he was a unicorn that had been turned human, which explained his unusually good looks, and why his hair and beard were almost pure white despite his youth), there were a great many human customs and traditions he had yet to become familiar with.

Lucy shook her head herself, and declared, "You don't know what you've been missing!"

"Enlighten me," Terence said.

"Well," said Tumnus, "once a year, around the beginning of winter, we are visited by Father Christmas—"

"Who?" Terence shot his two-hoofed companion a look of total bafflement at the odd title.

Tumnus leveled off his long ears slightly as he regarded Terence. "Boy, you _really _don't get out much, do you, mate?" the faun murmured.

This was where Lucy took over. "Father Christmas, Terence," the girl elucidated, "is a magical being who brings us gifts. He is the symbol of giving, of hope and unconditional love. Aside from Father Christmas, we give gifts to each other. It's our way of saying how much we love and care about each other, how much we appreciate each other. And Mr. Tumnus and I both have something for you today, Terence. We each have a present we would like to give you." So saying, she held out a package to Terence she had brought with her. From behind his back, Tumnus produced a package of his very own. Both packages were wrapped in generous layers of brightly colored paper, tied with fine silk ribbons that were secured with elegant bows.

Now the expression of confusion faded from Terence's face, to be replaced with a look of awe and humility.

"Oh, Lucy," he said in a hushed voice. "Tumnus…surely, you two didn't go to so much trouble just for me, did you?"

Lucy giggled, and even Tumnus gave a hearty chuckle.

"Don't be absurd, Terence," Tumnus smiled at his dear friend, as he settled onto the bed next to him.

"You deserve this," Lucy said, snuggling closer to Terence on the other side. "You're our friend, and we love you."

Touched, a smile spread over Terence's handsome, youthful face, even as a lump swelled in his throat. His eyes began to prickle, and he prayed fervently he wouldn't break down and start bawling in front of his friends. The truth was, before Terence came to Narnia, he had always been a bit of a loner. All through his life, he'd never had many friends he could call his own. Knowing that Lucy and Tumnus cared about him enough to give him something, with no strings attached, meant more to him than he could say.

"Go on," Tumnus insisted, thrusting his package at Terence, while Lucy did the same.

After a moment, Terence decided to appease his friends. He opted to open Tumnus's gift first.

Painstakingly, he loosened the beautiful ribbon and removed the paper so carefully that he never made a single rip in it. After peeling away what must have been at least five layers of paper, he finally saw with his own eyes exactly what Tumnus's gift was: a small statue of a unicorn, carved from very fine wood. Tumnus had obviously sculpted it himself. It was done very well. While it could never truly capture the true beauty and majesty of a real unicorn, Terence had to give his mate credit. The unicorn stood on three legs, with one front hoof lifted, in a sort of proud, dignified manner. Terence was impressed with the care and attention given to the details, most especially in the mane and tail.

Terence could well imagine this had been no simple task.

"Do you like it?" Tumnus asked. "This took me about four months to make. I had to make sure I got the very best wood, and I had to be sure it was done just right, before I gave it to you."

"Thank you, Tumnus," said Terence softly, lightly tracing the unicorn's face with his finger. "It's beautiful."

Seeing that he meant it, Tumnus smiled.

Lucy's package was considerably bigger, and just a little more decorative. When it became apparent that she'd wrapped her gift in more than three layers of paper, Terence paused to ask the girl, "Are you sure there's actually something wrapped up in all this? Or, is your gift to me nothing more than a dozen layers of pretty paper?"

This made both Tumnus and Lucy laugh. Terence gave Lucy a playful nudge with his elbow, and chucked one of the pillows in Tumnus's face, nearly knocking the faun over.

When Terence had removed the sixth leaf of paper, Lucy's present to him was at last revealed: a big, circular box, designed with lovely pictures of unicorns, fauns, and nymphs.

"Wow," said Terence, "this is very nice. Thank you, Lucy."

"But open it, Terence," Lucy insisted. "There's something inside."

The young man lifted a shrewd eyebrow to her. "Ah, aren't you the extravagant one?"

So, he removed the lid. Inside the box, cushioned on a bed of exceptionally delicate paper, was an enormous hunk of chocolate. As with Tumnus, the evidence that Lucy had made this with her own hands was plain. The chocolate was obviously supposed to be shaped like a heart, but somehow Lucy hadn't managed to make it into a perfect heart; one side was noticeably bigger than the other. Also, the chocolate had a sticky, somewhat gooey look to it, and the powdered sugar that coated the surface wasn't spread evenly.

It even had Lucy's name on it, which was really all the proof Terence needed.

But however simple, misshapen, or downright ridiculous the chocolate looked in appearance, knowing that Lucy made this herself, that the girl had bothered to go to all the trouble of putting this together just for him, was more than enough for Terence. The young man knew this had been made with more love than he deserved, and it melted him.

Tears flooded his eyes, blurring his surroundings.

Ashamed to be seen crying like a child, Terence bent his head and buried his face in his hands, but that didn't prevent a sob from escaping his throat.

"Oh, Terence," he heard Lucy's solicitous voice say, while he felt what he knew to be Tumnus's arms wrapping around him, holding him tightly.

Terence couldn't help it, and lapsed into a quiet stream of sobbing. "Hey, hey…hey," Tumnus crooned to him, as the young man wept.

The faun held his beloved friend closer, stroking him tenderly with his strong, gentle hands, while Lucy reached over and rubbed Terence's arm consolingly.

Together, they sat with Terence, allowing him to cry for a time.

When Terence finally calmed down in the end, when at last he revealed his tear-streaked face, Lucy lent him her handkerchief, while Tumnus asked him gently, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," said Terence bravely, though there was still a slight quiver in his voice.

"What's the matter, Terence?" Lucy asked. "Don't you like your gifts?"

"Oh, Lucy, of course I do. They're wonderful! They couldn't be better. I would never have them any other way."

"But…?" Tumnus probed.

"That's just it," said Terence hoarsely. "You two are always so kind to me. Perhaps a little_ too_ kind."

Now Tumnus and Lucy were the ones to give him quizzical looks. "What do you mean?" Lucy queried.

Terence hung his head. "You treat me like someone I am not," he said, sounding almost miserable. "You love me far more than I deserve. You trust me far more than I can bear."

He felt Tumnus's finger under his goateed chin, and Tumnus gently but resolutely forced the boy to look up at him, face to face. With his eyes exceptionally warm, his voice exceptionally kind, the faun told his mate, "Nonsense, Terence. We could never love you too much. There is no such thing as too much kindness. In fact, there is nowhere near enough kindness to go around, especially in a world like this." He moved his hand to Terence's cheek, cradling it tenderly. "As for trust," he continued, "I trust you, Terence…with my very life."

"Me too," Lucy chimed in.

Terence's face felt unusually hot, and it dawned on him that he was blushing. But he did not try to hide it this time. He opened his mouth once or twice to speak, but words failed him entirely. So, he did the only thing he could do to show Tumnus and Lucy how he felt, just how much each of them meant to him. He set the gifts and the pile of papers aside, wrapped an arm around each of his companions—one arm encircled Tumnus, the other encircled Lucy—and hugged them both as tightly as he could without choking them.

Both Tumnus and Lucy understood, and readily returned Terence's heartfelt embrace.

They remained like that for several minutes, until Terence realized something.

"Wait," he said, loosening his hold on them just a little. "I don't have a gift for either of you. I…I never realized…"

But Tumnus and Lucy, far from looking disappointed, only smiled at their sweet friend. Lucy crawled into Terence's lap and burrowed like a happy puppy against his bare chest, while Tumnus said, "Oh, Terence, don't you realize _you're_ the greatest gift we could ever ask for? Anyone can bestow gifts in boxes, with all those fancy ribbons and bows." The faun's expression grew meaningful, and his voice softened. "But the gifts that truly matter, that truly last, come from the heart. Love, friendship…_that_ is what Christmas is all about."

Terence blushed, for the second time in less than twenty minutes. His heart swelled to bursting with love and pride, and the runoff emerged through his eyes.

At a loss for words yet again, he kissed Lucy on the crown of her head, then turned slightly and huddled against Tumnus, letting his head rest on the faun's shoulder, just under his curly beard. Tumnus could feel the young man's tears on his skin, but he didn't care. He had actually already begun to shed a few tears himself.

"Merry Christmas, Terence," whispered Lucy, still curled into a snug ball on his lap.

Though the room was still considerably cool, Terence felt perfectly warm and content.

"And the same to you both," he whispered back.


	16. One More Dance

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS: 100 CHALLENGE**

_Since I did several Christmas-themed stories for this, I decided I ought to do a Valentine tale, for a change. I know I'm a day late for this (I had a bunch of other things on my hands, and the overall story took longer to finish than I'd thought), but, again, like they say, better late than never. This is one of my more personal stories; this is one I feel I, myself, can really relate to.  
_

_

* * *

Terence © unicorn-skydancer08_

_Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media_

_**All rights reserved. **_

_**

* * *

Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever, without expressed permission, is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated.**_

**

* * *

STORY 16:  
ONE MORE DANCE  
**

For some people, like Tumnus and Lucy, Valentine's Day was a wonderful, joyous time of the year. But for others, like Terence, it was no holiday. It wasn't that Terence was opposed to Valentine's Day. But on a day of love and romance, when you had no one to share it with…the feeling just wasn't the same. While everyone else swapped flowers, cards, and candy, Terence didn't have anyone to give him anything; or, indeed, anyone to give anything to. Oh, sure, his friends would give him a little something, so he wasn't _totally _left out, but it wasn't the same.

And what he received from his friends was nowhere near as good as what the lovebirds gave each other.

This year, for instance, Tumnus had given Lucy a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers he had grown and garnered himself. Lucy, on the other hand, had put together an exquisite marbled apple spice cake, Tumnus's favorite; it was shaped like a heart, coated with white icing, and topped with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and all of Tumnus's other favorite berries.

Edmund had bestowed upon his love, Angela, an expensive string of pearls that he paid for out of his own pocket, while Peter indulged his own sweetheart, Deidre, with an intricately carved ring with a stone in the center that was pure diamond. Susan, needless to say, was showered with numerous gifts from many adoring admirers, ranging from roses to fine jewelry to elaborate poetry; but the one gift she cherished above all the others was from Oreius, which was a delicate silver necklace with a rare amethyst stone. Even Beaver had given Mrs. Beaver a beautiful seashell he found recently on the beach; it was cream-colored, with a pale pink interior, and the waves had polished it to a silken sheen.

They were all wonderful gifts, and knowing that they were given with sincere love made them all the more special.

But it was not the lack of grand gifts that mattered so much to Terence.

What disappointed the unicorn youth the most, the thing that made him especially unhappy, was the dance they always held every year, in the royal ballroom.

That night, while everyone else danced away to the festive music, Terence kept to himself in a corner with a glass of wine, feeling lonely and neglected. From where he stood, he could make out Peter dancing with Deidre, and Edmund with Angela. It wasn't hard to find Susan and Oreius. Being a centaur, and one of the bigger centaurs at that, Oreius easily towered over most of the lot. Susan barely came to his chest, but she danced as heartily with him as anyone else in the room. Terence noticed she was wearing the necklace Oreius gave her that day; the purple stone contrasted vividly with her fair skin, and it matched her purple gown perfectly.

And, of course, there was Tumnus, dancing with Lucy. Tumnus wore his green silk scarf just for the occasion, and Lucy's long red-gold hair was elegantly braided, with wisteria. Terence saw how his friends moved about together in a harmonious waltz, and how radiant they looked together. There was no mistaking the happiness and adoration in their faces.

This made Terence almost physically sick with envy. Aside from that, seeing the way everyone glided over the floor saddened the white-haired youth to no small degree.

He knew how much better he could dance than all of them, even the dryads.

Although he was human now, Terence still maintained the light step and the flowing grace of a unicorn. Not even the most gifted dancer in Narnia could outshine him.

But who was there to dance with? Every person in the room had a partner, except him.

What joy was there in dancing alone?

Terence could feel a burning sting in his eyes, along with a lead weight in his throat, and he forthwith took a swig from his glass to keep from breaking down and bawling in public.

When the music died down temporarily, when the dancing reached a brief intermission, Tumnus and Lucy both took notice of Terence standing there, and their smiles faded when they saw how miserable and alone their friend appeared. They felt their hearts brim with pity, knowing how tough this had to be for him. They hated to see him like that; if only there was something they could do to make the young man feel better. Then Lucy had an idea. She beckoned Tumnus to lean in closer, and she whispered something into the faun's ear.

Meanwhile, Terence was just deciding he couldn't stay there any longer. He was getting out of here, and going to bed. At least in sleep, he could forget how much he was hurting inside, and by morning, all this would be over and done. But before Terence had a chance to take his leave, Lucy came up to him unexpectedly.

"Terence," she said, offering a gentle smile, "would you like to dance?"

Terence looked at her, surprised. "What?"

Reaching out to take his hand, Lucy said, "You look like you could use a partner. Well, I am more than happy to oblige. What do you say?"

Terence continued to stare down at the girl in disbelief. Was she serious? Dance with _him_, here and now? But she was Tumnus's sweetheart; not his. What right did _he_ have to be with her?

"Go on, mate," said Tumnus, who had joined up with them by that time. "It's all right."

"No," Terence objected, "no, I—I couldn't possibly—"

"Oh, come on," Lucy insisted. "One harmless dance oughtn't hurt anybody."

"My hooves need a rest, anyhow," said Tumnus, even though Terence knew perfectly well there was nothing wrong with the faun's hooves. Terence recalled attending the wilder summer dances in the heart of the Western Wood with his mate, and they all danced throughout the entire night without tiring.

"You can't hide yourself away all night," Lucy said to the unicorn youth. She gave a light tug at Terence's hand. "Come on, Terence, dance with me!"

But Terence wouldn't budge from the spot.

"What are you waiting for?" Tumnus questioned.

Still, Terence held back. It wasn't that he didn't want to dance—of course, he did; he literally ached with the desire—but he wasn't so sure.

He knew he could never dance with Lucy, or with anyone else, not the way he used to dance with…well, with _her_.

Ever since Rhiella disappeared from his life, it wasn't the same. Terence just didn't have the same heart in dancing, nor did his feet have the same rhythm.

"Please, Terence?" Lucy persisted, when he continued to hesitate.

Turning his head away to hide his troubled expression, Terence murmured absently, "I…I think I'll just have another wine…"

"Oh, I see," said Tumnus, before Terence could take two steps.

The note of shrewdness in the faun's tone caught Terence's attention immediately. "What do you mean, 'oh I see'?" the young man demanded, turning to face the faun directly.

Tumnus smiled at his mate, one eyebrow cocked meaningfully above the other. "You're afraid, aren't you?" he taunted.

Terence narrowed his own eyes in indignation. "Afraid of what?"

"That you can't dance nearly as well as I can," said Tumnus haughtily.

He knew full well it wasn't true, having seen Terence's moves for himself on more than one occasion, but perhaps a little poke at his pride was just what his mate needed.

"_What?_" Terence demanded sharply, his blue eyes flashing. "I can _so _dance as well as you, _Mr._ Tumnus, if not ten times better!"

Acting as if he hadn't heard, Tumnus deliberately looked away. "Ah, well…I can't say I blame you for sticking to the sideline. After all, it's quite obvious we fauns are the better dancers."

Lucy smiled craftily, knowing exactly what Tumnus was getting at.

Terence's handsome face flushed scarlet. "Oh, yeah? I'll show you, wise goat!"

So saying, he seized Lucy's hand, and hauled her out into the middle of the ballroom floor.

The musicians had already begun another song, one that was much mellower and slower-paced than the previous one. While one single faun played his pipe to the accompaniment of several lutes and tambourines, the couples guided each other slowly about the room, moving to and fro in an elegant sway. But Terence easily excelled them all, dancing as no one had been able to dance. Everyone who saw him was charmed by his unearthly grace, and the sylphlike moves he made on the floor. Some actually stopped dancing themselves just to watch. Susan, Oreius, Edmund, and Deidre were all greatly impressed; Angela, who was a nymph herself, admitted that even she couldn't dance nearly as well as that.

Even Peter had to admire the unicorn youth.

Lucy could scarcely feel the floor beneath her feet. It was as if she and Terence were gliding on the very air, like a pair of birds in flight. Every now and again, Terence twirled her around in a circle, then, a few seconds later, pirouetted her the other way. Oblivious to the awestruck stares and whispers of the crowd, Terence turned off his thoughts, and allowed himself to become one with the music, letting his body move as it would. He simply let it all loose. He seemed to be almost in a trance; he lost all sense of time, and of the real world.

It wasn't until the music ceased and everyone started cheering and applauding that the spell was broken, and Terence snapped back to reality. He immediately slid to a stop, and stood still with Lucy in the center of the room, looking about in bewilderment. The crowd continued to applaud and acclaim him, with genuine enthusiasm.

Even Tumnus took part in the ovation. He had never seen his mate dance quite like that before. He'd learned a few new steps himself, from watching the two of them.

As Terence continued to survey the crowd, as he watched and listened to their praise of him, he could feel his heart lighten significantly. For the first time that day, or in the longest time, a true smile spread over his handsome face, the old sparkle illuminating his bright sapphire eyes. Lucy smiled herself, pleased to see her friend in good spirits again. Terence's gaze met with hers, but the young man could find no words with which to properly express his feelings, how much all this meant to him, and how grateful he was to the girl.

So, he did the only rational thing he could do. He pulled Lucy closer to him, and wrapped her tightly in his lean, sturdy arms. Lucy understood, and hugged him just as warmly in return.

As the two friends embraced, Terence lowered his face to Lucy's, and whispered but two words into her ear: "Thank you."


	17. A Moment of Play

**TERENCE AND TUMNUS: 100 CHALLENGE**

_Yes, this challenge is still going on! Would you believe this thing is now three years old? It goes back nearly to the time when I joined this site in the first place. And it's been well over a year since my last story. Ho-o-oly moly! _

_Anyway, I thought I'd write something short, simple, and sweet, showing Terence and Tumnus having a good time. Nothing bad is going on: no fights, no villains, no heartbreaks, no brushes with death, nothing but good, harmless fun. The idea for this story came to mind while I was listening to "Rain" from the soundtrack to "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron", composed by the brilliant Hans Zimmer. I could very easily picture Terence and Tumnus in place of Rain and Little Creek.  
_

* * *

**Tumnus and Narnia © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media**

**Terence and Story © unicorn-skydancer08**

_**All rights reserved. **_

* * *

_**Any copying or reproduction of these stories in any way whatsoever, without expressed permission, is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated.**_

* * *

**STORY 17:  
A MOMENT OF PLAY  
**

The afternoon was bright and warm. The unicorn Terence was feeding peacefully in the emerald-green meadows just beyond Castle Cair Paravel.

The young stallion's coat shone a pure, brilliant white in the sun; his long, thick mane and tail gleamed like polished silver. His magnificent golden horn brushed the tops of the grass and clover while he grazed. It was not so different from the way a horse grazed, except Terence stood much straighter and taller than any horse, his legs tucked in neatly, his whole body steady yet supple.

As he leisurely eased his way along the meadow, munching to his heart's content, he heard a high, clear whistle from behind.

Lifting his head, still chewing, he glanced over his shoulder and spotted a faun in the near distance. Terence would know that faun anywhere; it was none other than Tumnus, his best mate. Tumnus smiled at Terence, his eyes warm and cheery. Terence felt his heart lift significantly at the sight of him. Some would have considered it odd for a faun and a unicorn to be good friends, but neither Terence nor Tumnus knew nor cared about the difference.

After taking one second to swallow what he already had in his mouth, Terence trotted directly to the faun, light as a feather on his hooves as he always was, whisking his tail jauntily as he went. Tumnus moved forward at the same time.

When the two fantastic creatures met up with each other, Terence lowered his head, and Tumnus reached up to stroke the unicorn's velvety muzzle.

"Hello, Terence," he greeted the white beast fondly.

"Fancy running into you here, mate," replied the unicorn, in an accent that was slightly thicker and richer than the faun's. "What are you doing here?"

"Do friends need a specific excuse to be in one another's company?" Tumnus lifted an eyebrow meaningfully. "Are they not at perfect liberty to visit whenever they wish?"

Terence laughed—a kind laugh, sweet and pleasant. "Point taken."

He edged in closer, and Tumnus now wound his arms around the stallion's neck, as far as they could reach. Terence nuzzled the faun gently in return, his breath warm and fragrant with the grass. Tumnus closed his eyes and deeply inhaled the fresh woodsy smell of the beast. He twined his fingers in the luxurious mane, which was as fine as clouds and as soft as the very best Calormene silks.

Presently, Terence took a playful nibble at the faun's honey-cinnamon curls. This made Tumnus chuckle and draw back at once. "Hey, now, don't do that! You know how easily I tickle, Terence!"

"Oh, really?" Terence eyed him shrewdly.

He brushed his snout along Tumnus's bare shoulder, all the way up his neck, snuffling him like an enthusiastic puppy. Tumnus laughed outright and tried to push his mate away.

"Hey, _hey!_ Stop that, you imp!"

Terence moved around to the back of the faun and gave him a nudge forward. When Tumnus tried to grab him, the unicorn evaded him effortlessly. Tumnus lunged again, but Terence danced away.

"You'll never catch me!" Terence gloated.

Tumnus knew perfectly well he couldn't, but it was fun to chase his four-footed companion around the field. Terence cantered slowly enough to stay within range, yet just beyond Tumnus's reach. His mane and tail streamed behind him like silver banners in the warm breeze, while his hooves flashed like gold coins. He moved along with perfect ease and grace, never once faltering. Tumnus, being half-goat with a bit of stag mixed in, was quite swift and nimble himself, but Terence beat him by a long shot.

Together, the two friends darted across the meadow in a random, zigzaggy pattern. They moved in one direction for a time, then veered off in another.

Once, Terence performed a sharp U-turn that made Tumnus's hooves skid on the grass when he tried it himself. Tumnus managed to keep from falling completely to the ground, though just barely.

After keeping this up for a long time, when Tumnus felt he couldn't run anymore, he stopped and sank to the soft bed of grass. He spread himself flat on his back and closed his eyes, catching his breath, waiting for his racing heart to calm and for his legs to regain feeling. When Terence saw this, he slowly approached his mate and stood over him. He dropped his head to the faun's level. He never made a sound, but Tumnus knew he was there from the way the sun no longer shone so brightly through his eyelids and from the gentle tickle of the unicorn's breath on his face. Tumnus waited for a bit, and when he felt the time was just right, he abruptly seized hold of Terence's head, exclaiming, "_Gotcha!_"

Terence gave a slight squeal of surprise, but he did not pull away.

Tumnus opened his eyes and grinned up at the unicorn as he tussled with him some. It was now his turn to gloat. "I got you now, Terence!"

"Who's got who?" Terence's sapphire eyes twinkled mischievously.

Tumnus wrested the white beast all the way to the ground (Terence allowed himself to be dragged down, of course) and pinned him in place with his own body.

Terence pretended to struggle, flailing his hooves, jerking his head about and whipping his tail back and forth. "Mercy! Oh, have mercy!" the unicorn cried in feigned despair.

Bringing his head close to Terence's, Tumnus asked with a cheeky grin, "Do you surrender?"

"Victory is all yours, mate!"

So Tumnus eased off him, and Terence settled down and lay quietly on the grass. Tumnus stretched himself out beside the stallion, nestling his head against the unicorn's silken flank.

At length, Terence commented, "Well, that was fun."

"Sure was," Tumnus agreed, still panting slightly from the exertion of his run. "But I don't think I have the strength to stand anymore."

Terence snorted. "You're such a wimp!"

"Well, can that be helped? You have the unfair advantage of being a unicorn, mate. You're naturally quicker and have a great deal more endurance than most creatures."

"This is true."

"And you're naturally more bigheaded, too."

"This is true—hey!" Terence raised his head somewhat to scowl at the faun, who just chuckled heartily.

But Tumnus was serious when he said, "But I love you, anyway, mate. I wouldn't trade you or the years we've spent together for anything in the world."

This wiped the scowl from Terence's face immediately. "I could say the same for you, my friend," he said in a hushed tone.

Tumnus smiled. He caressed the unicorn's side for a time, while Terence lay as docile as a lamb.

The warmth of the sun and his own exhaustion made it impossible for Tumnus's eyes to remain open. Almost without realizing it, the faun drifted off to sleep, using Terence like a pillow. Staying where he was, Terence closed his eyes as well.

Soon, both friends were sleeping soundly.


End file.
